The Justice League of Anime
by Den Scurman
Summary: They're on a mission from God. Now they have to recruit heroes from across the Animé Dimensional Cluster before it's too late. Everyone's back in action, and just in time. Can the JLA survive the Zombie Apocalypse?
1. It Begins

_**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Tenchi Muyo, nor do I own God. I'm just trying to write an epic story based on stuff I like. Can you really hate a guy for doing that? Seriously:-)_

_**The Justice League of Animé**_

_By Den Scurman_

All seemed right with everything. People were going about, living their lives the way they see fit, while others tried to conquer, and still others had dedicated their lives to stopping these would-be conquerors. Yes, His existence plan was going along, just as He knew it would. He knew that there would be a few disturbances every once and a while, but that's why he made those seven guardians, to take care of that kind of thing if the native population could not. The system had been in place since the beginning of this plane of existence because he knew it would work, although there would be a very interesting test every now and then.

He glanced about his several monitors, checking on the progress of His creation. He didn't need all this technology, but it was still fun to use. He sees all, knows all, and can do all, but it was still nice to distract Himself for a moment with a quick game of solitaire. Speaking of which, He closed His game and turned to His office door. Two seconds later a knock was heard.

"YOU MAY ENTER."

An angel wearing black slacks and a short-sleeve white button-up shirt walked in with his face buried into a folder that he had brought in. He glanced up, and upon seeing Him, fell on his face in worship. He bid the angel to stand, and he did.

"SO STEVE, WHAT IS IT THAT YOU HAVE COME TO ME TO REPORT?"

Slightly flustered, the angel glanced back at the folder.

"Well, Kami-sama, we've been following the activities in the G4 dimensional cluster, as per your command, and we've found that the three super powers there have begun a war."

Kami-sama leaned forward, propping His head on his hands. "TELL ME MORE OF THIS WAR." The angel stepped back in shock, unaccustomed to the omniscient asking him such a question. Needless to say, he was speechless. Kami-sama smirked. "JUST AMUSE ME, STEVE."

"…okay," Steve responded meekly as he went back into the file. "According to what we've found, if this war escalates to a final battle between the three superpowers, the entire G4 dimensional cluster will collapse on itself out of existence."

"AND HAVE THERE BEEN ANY ATTEMPT BY THE NATIVES TO STOP THIS WAR?"

"Um…yes, sir. The Third Party tried to mediate things, but several attacks against each side caused everything to fall apart."

"SO, WHAT EVENT WOULD CAUSE THE G4 CLUSTER TO COLLAPSE?"

"…"Steve shook his head to clear out his confusion. "If all four factions fought each other in the same dimension, the strain would cause a chain reaction that would ripple throughout the cluster, utterly destroying the space-time continuum." Kami-sama paused to think on this for a moment. Steve spoke up again. "Um, with all due respect, Lord, but…don't you know all of this already?"

Kami-sama glanced at the angel and smiled. "ALL FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE READERS, STEVE."

"What?"

"NEVERMIND. HOW DID THEY FIND OUT HOW TO TRAVEL TO THE DIFFERENT DIMENSIONS WITHIN THE CLUSTER?"

"They used the 'Warp Zone' technology they already had available and improved on it. Now they can access every dimension in the cluster."

"WHAT WOULD YOU RECOMMEND TO RECTIFY THIS SITUATION?"

Steve fell back on his butt, literally floored by this question.

"Um, well…excuse me," he said as he recovered by a slight degree. "Well, since we've exhausted every native option, then, if I may be so bold, I would recommend calling in…"

"DO NOT CALL THE GUARDIANS OF THE PLANE SO QUICKLY, STEVE, FOR THERE IS STILL ANOTHER NATIVE OPTION REMAINING."

"Please, oh Lord, tell me how to fix this."

"THE G4 CLUSTER IS NOT THE ONLY DIMENSIONAL CLUSTER THREATENED BY THIS WAR. OBSERVE."

Kami-sama glanced at a screen near the angel and a star-map appeared. The angel studied this for a moment before gasping in horrid realization.

"This is worse than we thought, Lord. We didn't realize that the Animé Cluster was also in danger!"

"AND THUS NOT ALL NATIVE OPTIONS HAVE BEEN EXPLORED. GO, MY CHILD, AND PAGE THE FORMER 'GODDESS OF KNOWLEDGE'," as Kami-sama actually used the quotation hand gesture as He spoke. "SHE HAS THE ABILITY TO GATHER HEROES FROM ACROSS THE ANIMÉ DIMENSIONAL CLUSTER AND BRING THEM TO THE G4 CLUSTER TO STOP THIS WAR. BESIDES, I'VE BEEN MEANING TO HAVE A LITTLE CHAT WITH HER ABOUT THAT TITLE OF HERS."

Steve looked at his Lord in awe and confusion. "Um, Lord, wouldn't that actually make things worse?"

Kami-sama raised an eyebrow at the angel. "THAT IS TRUE, BUT IT IS THE FINAL NATIVE OPTION LEFT. BESIDES, IT IS A UNIVERSAL LAW THERE THAT THINGS ALWAYS GET WORSE BEFORE THEY GET BETTER."

"I understand, my Lord. As always you've thought of everything."

"TELL THAT TO THE AUTHOR."

"I'm sorry, Lord?"

"NEVERMIND. GO, AND PAGE WASHU. I SHALL SPEAK TO HER THROUGH MY SON."

"Which one shall we choose, o Lord. There are so many Washus from many different dimensions, mostly from all the Tenchi fanfics out there."

"SUMMON ONE FROM NEAR THE MAIN TENCHI MUYO DIMENSION, ONE THAT HAS NOT YET BEEN CHANGED BY FANFICTION."

"Yes, Lord," Steve responded and left Kami-sama's office. He sat there for a moment, thinking things through. He thought that this would be very interesting for everyone else to see how this idea would work out. His attention then went to the door as someone else walked in.

"Hi, Dad!"

"JESUS, MY SON, COME IN! I'VE BEEN EXPECTING YOU."

"When have I ever been able to surprise you?"

"YOU'D BE SURPRISED."

Father and Son laughed as they began to get down to business.

(B-D)

A/N: Just a warning to those who are enjoying this story, this won't be staying here in this section for long. As you may have noticed, this is a crossover, and as such this story will be wondering Ffnet to sections that it is focusing on. If it's focusing on the Tenchi crew, it will be in the Tenchi section. If it's focusing on the other stuff that's in here, it will be in their respective sections. I hope that I don't lose people due to the seemingly random wondering of this story, but that's what favorites is for, right? I'm doing my best to make sure that this will be good. Let me know what you think so I can keep the quality up. Thanks, all. (B-D)


	2. No Need for Salvation

_**Disclaimer: **I don't own Tenchi Muyo nor do I own Jesus. I get no money for this, so don't sue me. If you wish to smite me down with your wrath, please do so in the form of flaming darts flung from the reviews section. Enjoy. :-)_

_**No Need for Salvation**_

It was just another day near the picturesque lake somewhere in Japan. All seemed right with the world as the inhabitants of the impressive two-story house right on the shore had come home. The birds currently occupying the dock flew away as these normal people finally arrived…in their giant spaceship. A crescent beam shone on the dock, as a group of humans materialized. Well, at least, at first glance one would think they were human…except the floating one with long, cyan hair and a tail clinging on the same average-looking boy as the pretty, more on-the-ground girl with short purple hair and regal-looking clothes. Next to the purple-haired girl was a younger, teenage-looking girl with two long, blue ponytails going almost to the ground. She also wore regal-looking clothing. Next to the tail girl was another shorter girl with long spiky red hair that was also impossibly long. Behind her was a taller woman who had short, light bluish-green hair cut up to her ears Next to her was an elder man who looked to be in his eighties, but also looking very healthy for his age. The brown and gray spaceship above them suddenly shrunk and what landed was what appeared to be some odd mix of a brown cat and a brown and white rabbit. It meowed as the little blue-haired girl held out her hands and the "cabbit" leapt onto her shoulders. Yeah, this happy family was as normal as an alien family living on Earth could be.

"Wow, Seina's wedding sure was exciting, don't you guys think?" asked the boy with two girls hanging on him.

"Sure was, Tenchi," replied the floating Tail Girl. "Nothing like a good wedding with a sneak peak of their honeymoon to give a girl a few ideas."

"Ryoko!" gasped the on-the-ground girl. "That is about the most vile thing I've ever heard from you!"

"You gotta admit, Ayeka, it was a pretty good show."

At this point Ayeka started turning red with embarrassment. Ryoko simply laughed at her as the others made their way back to the house.

"I have to admit, though," said the girl with spiky red hair, "even I was surprised that Seina ended up with eight wives, what with his bad luck and all."

"I think you're right, Washu," said the other little girl as she blushed a little. "I think he broke the record for marrying the most wives at one time in our family's history."

"I think you're right, Sasami," replied the grandfather-like person, who for some reason was referred to as 'grandpa,' "but for now, I'm looking forward to getting back to our otherwise peaceful lives."

"Grandpa's right," said Washu. "Ever since Seina joined the GXP, things have calmed down a lot for us."

_**SPLASH!**_

Everyone looked back to the source of the splash and sighed as a tall blond managed to climb her way onto the dock.

"Welcome back, Mihoshi," greeting Sasami.

"Heh, hi," she replied.

(B-D)

A door appeared out of nowhere and opened as Washu entered her lab, which was contained in some kind of pocket dimension. She loved this place, where she performed all kinds of tests and experiments that would otherwise threaten single and dual-celled organisms everywhere. Besides, this is where she kept all of her stuff.

"Ah, finally!" exclaimed Washu as her clothes quickly changed from her earlier galactic formalwear to her regular black and red clothes that she loved oh so very much. She sat down in front of her view screen. "Now I can finally get some work done."

_**KAZAP!**_

"Yeaag!" she screamed as lightning struck about three inches to the right of her transparent computer screen. Washu landed hard on the floor, suffering from a near heart attack. Sure, she was the greatest scientific mind in the universe, but almost getting struck by lightning while inside a weather-free pocket dimension is enough to scare anybody's bodily functions empty. She simply sat there for about three minutes, catching her breath and pounding her chest in an attempt to calm herself. She finally had the strength to shakily pick herself up to investigate. Being a scientific mind, she was curious to see the aftermath of what she thought was impossible. It couldn't have been an attack or they would've continued with another strike while she was down. She finally approached the spot where the lightning stuck and was dumbfounded. Instead of a hole or crater what she found was a message which seemed to have be typed into the nigh-invulnerable floor that she herself had created. The language was also something that made her heart skip a beat or two. It was written in the old language her followers had used when she was the Goddess of Knowledge. She shook her head of the shakiness and read the message.

"To Washu, former Goddess of Knowledge:

This is a message to inform you that you are to meet

with a representative of Kami-sama at the shrine training

grounds at six o'clock this evening. Please dress casual

and eat before the meeting. Further details will be given

by His representative.

Signed,

Kami-sama"

"Great Kami-sama?" she whispered as she was once again floored by what was happening. "He wants me to meet with Him? This must be serious…oh my, this can't be good…………unless," she started to get that crazy look in her eye, "He wants to acknowledge my…"

_**KAZAP!**_

Washu was on the floor once again, this time on her stomach with her hands over her head. She got up and read a second message from Kami-sama.

"To Washu, former Goddess of Knowledge:

Not even close.

Signed,

Kami-sama"

Exasperated and thoroughly humbled, Washu went to her room to prepare herself for the meeting of her lifetime. It's not often that you're personally paged by Kami-sama Himself.

(B-D)

Washu sat in a transparent, floating chair on the edge of the training grounds. She knew that there would be no interruptions after the explanation she gave to Yosho. He assured her that at least no one from their group would interfere. Of course, they weren't going to say who this meeting was with lest curiosity get them killed. That is how that whole original Fall of Man thing happened, after all. She most certainly didn't want to screw this up.

"You're early, little Washu," said a kind voice just a few inches from her left ear.

"Eeepp!" eepped Washu as she nearly jumped out of her skin. Again she found herself pounding her chest, trying to get herself to calm down. Inexplicably, she muttered a common Earth saying. "Jesus Christ!"

"Yes, I AM." Washu's heart nearly stopped. Those three words had more gravity to them than anything else she had ever heard in her long life. She just had to know if he was real or if she was dreaming. "Yes, I am real, my child, and no, you are not dreaming, as the dull ache from your reaction to my Father's first message can tell you."

Washu, to her credit, did not faint, but simply fell to her knees. Never before had she ever encountered such power, so much holiness in its purest form. That's when she noticed something for the first time, causing her to double-blink as she stood.

"Um, Mr. Christ?"

"Please, call me Jesus."

"Ok, but why are you wearing pants?"

Not exactly the first question that she had planned to ask the Son of Kami-sama, but the fact that he was wearing tan Dockers and a white t-shirt with a dark blue arrow pointing up with the words "I'm with HIM" written under the arrow, kind of caught her a little off guard.

"Did you expect me to be in a tunic or robes?"

"Um…"

"Or in blindingly bright holy armor?"

"Actually, yeah."

"I understand. You do remember that my Father did say to dress casually, am I correct?"

"When are you not?"

"Man has a saying that holds true even for me. 'Flattery will get you nowhere.'"

"Ouch."

"No, but you wound me, Washu. You've hardly prayed to me since Kagato or even tried to seek any kind of relationship with me."

"Um…oh boy…"

"Even now, you are not even being open enough to be in your true form." Washu looked herself over, and noticed that she was still in child form. "I know why you choose this guise, but you do not have to."

"What, you want to make it better? What makes you think I'm worthy of something like that, huh?"

"Do not worry, Washu. I am not here to judge you, that my father's job. I am here on behalf of my Father to give you your calling."

"My calling? I thought my calling was to…oh, well I guess not, huh?"

"Actually, it is because of your scientific genius that you were selected for this mission."

"Mission?"

"Indeed. You have been chosen to save not one but two dimensional clusters."

Washu took an involuntary step back. "Whoa."

"Indeed. Please take a look at these screens." Jesus made a sweeping motion with his arm and several screens materialized in mid air. Washu brought out her own laptop, trying to scan everything around both Him and his technology. "You will not be able to scan my equipment, Washu." She hung her head for a moment. "But I will upload everything you'll need to your databanks. First, however, I shall brief you on what is going on." Jesus pulled out a laser pointer and pointed it to the leftmost screen. "This is the G4 Dimensional Cluster. The three superpowers there have just recently gone to war. A forth faction has tried to mediate things, but failed." He points to the next screen. "If all four factions here have there final battle in one dimension, which will happen if this war is not stopped, will cause a chain reaction that will destabilize their space-time continuum." He pointed to a third screen showing the results of His statement.

"That's...very bad."

"It's worse that you think, Washu." She double-blinked. "You see, this dimension is a part of the Animé dimensional cluster, and it is closely connected to the G4 cluster. Thus, if the G4 cluster destabilizes, so will this one as well."

Washu smacked her forehead as the ramifications hit her like a Mack truck. She had never in her experience even thought that there would be enough power from any mortal force that could destabilize an entire dimensional cluster, never mind two. She at best could only take down one dimension at a time.

"About how much time do we have before things get too messy?" she asked.

"Fortunately they have just begun their war, so you do have some time, but it would be wise not to procrastinate for too long in any one dimension."

"Huh?"

"You must go to several dimensions in this cluster to gather allies and friends so you may have the strength and numbers needed to stop this war. Gather them here and I shall upload everything you'll need to journey to the G4 cluster. You must beware, however, for there are forces even now that are working to take advantage of this. You must lead this league of heroes on this mission, for you have the knowledge and ability to do so. I am counting on you, Washu."

Washu wobbled for a moment. She was used to saving planets and the occasional empire, but this was two clusters of dimensions with countless people and other life forms hanging in the balance. Sure, she was a former goddess and all, but this was still a daunting task, to say the least. And she was also supposed to lead, too. She hadn't really lead anything major since she was at the academy, and that was a long time ago. And although she was very confident in her skills, she knew that one mistake could possibly cause the destruction of a dimension. These were the thoughts of the great scientist as she milled through everything she had seen and heard. It wasn't often that she got overwhelmed, but this certainly qualified. She then finally noticed a hand on her shoulder. She looked up and locked eyes with the Son of Man.

"I know you have doubts. Most people we call on do, but we know that you can do this. You must have faith in He who will watch over you. It may seem so, but We will not put more on you than you can bear. Worry not, my child," he whispered as he embraced her with a hug, "if you just believe in me, then even when you're faith wavers, I will always be there with you."

Never before had Washu felt so safe, so free of anything before. She returned His hug for a moment, then stepped back. Jesus simply looked her in the eyes with compassion.

"I have so many things to think about. I..I need some time."

"I understand."

"But," she said as she grew to her true form, "I guess I can start with just being myself, eh?"

Jesus smiled and nodded. "That is a good start. I will allow you some time to think things through, but remember, you do not have all the time in the world."

"I know."

"Very well. Be strong, Washu, and believe. I tell you the truth, this will all help when we meet again to talk about your little title of 'Goddess of Knowledge.'" as Jesus used the quotation hand gesture. Washu started to sweat. "It's not as bad as you think, but we still have to talk about that. Farwell, my child."

And then He was gone. Washu stood there for several minutes as she sorted through everything.

"That really wasn't a dream," she said to herself as she searched her feelings. She did feel safe and strong. She pulled up her laptop and found the information about the mission, confirming that it was all for real. "Well, so much for going back to that peaceful life..." than she flashbacked to the last thing Jesus had said. "I have to talk to Kami-sama about me being a former Goddess?" she nearly screamed. She buried her face in her hand. "Oh, boy."

(B-D)


	3. No Need for Recruitment

Disclaimer: I don't own neither Tenchi Muyo nor Jesus, but I at least own the idea of dimensional clusters. Other than that, don't sue me please. :-)

_**No Need for Recruitment**_

"So, what are we all doing here, again?" asked an irritated Ryoko.

Everyone had been assembled in the family room with Grandpa sitting on the couch closest to the door.

"As I said before, Ryoko," replied Grandpa, "All will be revealed when the time is right. As of now, however, we must stay here until Washu returns."

"Like hell I will!" she yelled. "She leaves not two minutes ago and I've already noticed that I'm completely cut off from my 'mom.' There's not much I know that can do that, and everything we've experienced that can has also been something big. Now step aside, old man, before I..."**_SHOOM!_** "Whoa." Ryoko paused at the door, considering that the Tenchi blade now blocked her path. She followed the sword down to Grandpa, still sitting but with one arm holding the sword. "Man, you're really serious about this, aren't you?"

To say that everybody else was shock would be an outright lie. To say that all but Mihoshi was shocked would be true. Mihoshi simply started in wonderment.

"Grandpa, what is the meaning of this?" asked Ayeka.

"Yeah, Grandpa," said Tenchi, as he searched himself, trying to figure out how his grandfather got his sword from him without him noticing.

"I promised Washu that I wouldn't let anything interfere with her meeting, and I intend to keep that promise."

"What promise?" asked Tenchi.

"That is for her to say. I gave my word that I wouldn't tell until she was ready."

"Ryoko, calm down," said Noike. "I don't think he joking."

"Yeah...right..." mumbled Ryoko as she backed off for a moment. She paused, however, regaining Grandpa's attention. "Um, anybody knows what glows white and walks around at night?"

Everybody thought this over for a moment, not used to Ryoko spouting riddles.

"Is it a swan?" ask Mihoshi. Half the room pratfell.

"No," she answered as she backed away from the door, "but whatever it is, it's right at our doorstep."

"What?" exclaimed everyone.

Ryoko backed several feet from the door in her battle stance. Ayeka stood next to her as Grandpa stood. Tenchi stayed with Sasami and Noike. Ryo-Ohki leapt onto Ryoko's shoulder, ready for action. After a few seconds the door opened, bathing the room with white light, nearly blinding everyone. First strikes were about to be made when Ryoko identified the "intruder."

"Mom?" Everyone paused as their eyes adjusted to the light. Washu stood in the doorway, in her adult form, her face glowing white like the sun reflecting off of fresh snow. She watched her for a moment before she finally spoke. "Mom, what happened to you?"

Washu seemed to stare blankly at her daughter, seeming to wonder who she was.

"I met Him," she replied.

"Who?" asked Sasami.

"I met the Beginning and the End…I have some research to do. You all prepare for a long journey." She started to walk towards her lab.

"Wha?" said Ryoko as she passed her.

"Katsuhito may answer whatever questions he can. I'll fill in the gaps later. Just get ready to go on a long trip."

Everyone stared in utter confusion as Washu slowly walked to her lab door, went through it, and then nothing. All eyes turned to Grandpa, who was now scratching the back of his head with the deactivated Tenchi sword.

"Ok," replied Grandpa nervously, "where to begin…"

"How about starting with 'what the hell is going on here?'" demanded Ryoko.

"Yes," agreed Ayeka. "This is most strange. Even if it were an experiment, her face was literally glowing."

"Yeah, she was beautiful," said Sasami in awe.

"All things considered, her glowing face was to be expected. And secondly, hell had nothing to do with this."

"And what in Heaven's name did she mean, she 'met the Beginning and the End'?" asked Tenchi.

"You would be correct, Tenchi."

"What?" he responded, now even more confused.

"Shortly after we returned from Seina's wedding, Washu was sent a message to meet with a representative from Kami-sama Himself."

A loud thud was heard from everybody's jaws hitting the floor simultaneously.

"You mean she met with God!" yelled Tenchi, being the first to slightly recover.

"Or at least someone close to Him, judging from her face," answered Grandpa. "This is not the first time in human history that this has happened, though it is still debated to this day."

"Ok, let me get this straight…" said Ryoko, still confused about the whole thing.

"You mean she met with the Creator of Everything?" ask Mihoshi, gaining everyone's attention.

"For all intents and purposes, yes."

Everyone sat down, still blown away by this discussion. Ryo-Ohki meowed, having Ryoko translate for her.

"Ryo-Ohki wants to know about this journey mom was talking about."

"That, I don't know," replied Grandpa, "but just to be safe…TENCHI!"

"Arrgh! I'm right here, Grandpa!"

"Go to bed right now. Tomorrow morning at five o'clock sharp, we begin intensive training."

"WHAT?"

"It did sound like we're going to be on a long trip," said Noike, "and it may be dangerous."

"Noike is right," added Grandpa. "Regardless of what is about to happen, we had best be prepared."

"Maybe we should all turn in," said Sasami. "This way we can all be ready to go."

"Alright, then," said Grandpa. "Time for bed, everyone. Tomorrow we prepare for the worst."

Not exactly the happiest way to end this strange meeting, but everyone was still too weirded out to argue, opting to try to sleep off this craziness.

(B-D)

She knew she wasn't supposed to be up right now. Everyone else had gone to bed, wondering about what was going to happen the next day. She stood before the closet door, debating with herself on whether or not she should go in. She was worried about her friends, no, they were her family. She had always wanted a family, but didn't think it would be possible until a few years ago. Who would've guessed that crash landing on this remote planet would allow her to fulfill her wildest dreams. She then noticed another presence next to her. She looked up, and saw her partner in crime, so-to-speak. She had been the one constant in her life until recently, and she knew through their telepathic link that they were both finally happy with their lives and themselves. What they had to do now was to find out what was wrong with mom. Still looking up, she quietly meowed her readiness. Ryoko nodded as she took Ryo-Ohki's child form by the hand and ventured into Washu's lab together. It was strange. Normally the lab was a place of endless activity and energy, but tonight everything seemed subdued. There was only a dull light coming from further into the lab. As they continued they found her. They glanced at each other, knowing what was on the other's mind. This was too easy. Her security systems were off, and she was mumbling to herself. Something was very wrong. Ryo-Ohki switched to her cabbit form and rubbed against Washu's ankle, startling her. She picked up the cabbit and gave her a friendly smile.

"So, you finally came...both of you."

"Meow, meow."

"Yeah," said a slightly irritated Ryoko, "What she said."

"Take a seat, kids, and mommy'll all of your questions." Ryoko sat in midair as Ryo-Ohki settled in Ryoko's lap. "I've been doing a lot of research on what we have to do..."

"Who did you meet?"

"That...was something I never thought I'd ever do. I met with Him," she said as she pointed upward. "I met with the son of Kami-sama."

"You know you're talking like a crazy person, right, mom?"

"I know, but it's true!" as she speard her arms. "Heh, I couldn't help that. Are you familiar with the stories of Jesus Christ?"

"Him? Last I heard, he was either a myth or the center of a couple of fanatic religions across the galaxy. What about him?"

"He really does exist, and he's actually a really nice guy. I know you've been out of the loop for a while, but His religion, called Christianity here on Earth, isn't fanatical at all...or at least, it's not supposed to be. But it's my calling that He came down here to give me."

"Meow? Meow, MEOW!"

"Yeah, it is like my purpose in life. There's a lot of lives depending on me all of sudden." She looked a little downcast for a moment.

"So is that why you're in adult form, now?"

She gave herself a once over again, forgetting that she was as still an adult.

"That's part of the reason. Mainly, though, because I thought it was time to really be myself again."

"So, my little mommy's finally growing up, huh?" she smirked.

"Heh, yeah, you could say that. But it's kinda hard to remain a child when the fate of two dimensional clusters depend on you."

_**THUD!**_

"Meeeeooooooowwwww!"

Ryoko fell to the floor, causing Ryo-Ohki to bounce off her lap and hard onto the floor.

"WHAT?"

"Yeah. I'm going to need some help with this, but I'm not going to force anyone to go."

"Look, I don't know what's really going on here, but I'm not going to let you..."

"Meow!" exclaimed Ryo-Ohki, getting their attention. "Meow mew meow, meow mewmew meow, MEOW! Mew mea mermew meow meeoooowwww!"

Both started at the little cabbit, pondering her sagely advice.

"You know," said Ryoko, "if you'd let me finish, I was going to say that I wasn't going to let her go on by herself."

"Mer?"

"Yeah, what? Did you think I was just going to let her go off on a suicide mission on her own or what? I'm not THAT cold hearted anymore."

"MEA! Mer meow meow!"

"Ok, ok, you can come, too," said Washu. "Now you two go on to bed. it may be best to leave sometime tomorrow." Her daughters glanced at each other. "Ok, then. What did I miss?"

"Well, since we didn't know what was going on, Grandpa said to prepare for the worst and declared intensive training at 5 every mourning till you explain what's going on."

"Oy!"

(B-D)

The day started early and ended late. They had gone over all the basics by midmorning, and were sparring and running and training and running and practicing and running...despite the fact that they all had awesome stamina, everyone was still sore and worn out by the end of the day. The living room contained limp bodies moaning for relief. Even Noike and Sasami were completely worn out. Yes, a nice, hot soak in the bath would do wonders for them all at this point, but Grandpa asked them to be here in the living room before they relaxed for the night. A door opened and the room moaned once again, praying that their torment was over. Their prayers were answered...at least, in terms of physical torment.

"Hello, everyone!" said an energetic Washu as she hopped over the couch containing the inert forms of Ryoko and Ayeka. Everyone just stared at this strange being before them. She was still in her adult form, which surprised them. That and the fact that it was painfully obvious that she hadn't gone through the hell they just experienced that day had everyone glaring daggers at her, and if they had the energy, these glaring daggers would've actually made it to Washu, but instead settled on grumbling under their breaths. "Wow, Katsuhito really put you guys through the ringer, huh?" An overall moan replied. "Ok, perhaps this isn't the best place to talk, then." She pulled out her laptop and typed in a few commands. Everybody was then teleported out of their clothes and deposited directly into the bathhouse outside. As everyone noticed where they were, moans were replaced by 'ooohhsss' and 'aahhhhhhs' except for Tenchi, who now found himself in the buff with Sasami still resting under his right arm, who was also in the buff. His nose started to bleed as he just then realized how much she had grown over the last few years when Washu came by and picked her up. "Ok, let's move you over here to keep everybody out of trouble, right, Tenchi?" He could only nod in eternal gratitude. "Good."

"Meeeooooowwwwww!" soothed a now relaxed Ryo-Ohki who was now doing the backstroke in the bath.

"Yeah, thanks, mom," translated Ryoko.

"No problem. I need you guys to focus on me instead of the pain. This is important, ok."

"So what was so important that Grandfather even had Ayeka and I running laps all day?" asked Noike.

"Well, as I mentioned yesterday, I meet with a very important person. We have a mission and countless lives are depending on us."

"So what else is new?" asked Tenchi.

"What's new is that 1," as she started counting on her fingers "Kami-sama Himself is sending us out. 2...is that we're going to need some serious help..."

"Why would we need any help?" asked Ayeka. "We alone are a force to be reckoned with anywhere in the galaxy."

"And 3. We have to save two dimensional clusters."

Ayeka pratfell underwater as Noike gasped. Ryoko was non-chalaunt, having heard this before. Tenchi raised his hand as Mihoshi looked confused.

"Yes, Tenchi?"

"Just what is a dimensional cluster?"

"Ok, you know about how big this dimension is, right?"

"Sort of..."

"Ok, we live in a dimension, which is what most beings here call a reality or even a universe. A reality is the same as a dimension, and each dimension has many similarities, but have various subtle differences. These would be parallel dimensions. Like, say for example, in this dimension I was trapped by Kageto for over 700 years, but in a different dimension, I could've been trapped in Ryoko's cave for the past 700 years instead. If there's a bunch of these parallel dimensions, they can form a dimensional cluster. We, apparently, reside in what is called the Animé cluster. In many of our neighboring dimensions, we don't even have counterparts."

"So that means that we're dealing with a lot more than just several galaxies, doesn't it?" asked Tenchi.

"More like countless parallel dimensions."

"Sheesh."

"Yeah, I know. And no, we are not going to get other versions of us to help. It appears that they have put together a team for this mission, but only gave us clues as to who to recruit. He also said that there are other forces at work out there trying to take advantage of this situation, so I'm going to need a small team from here, as well."

"Is there any reason why we all can't go?" asked Tenchi.

"Believe it or not, this is. Jesus gave me the plans for the C.I.T. or Clichéd Interdimensional Transporter™ for traveling between dimensions." She mumbled, "apparently this has been done before." Then out loud again, "this allows me to displace only up to four people and their equipment from only a handful of dimensions. I have to go. I can take up two other volunteers."

"But I thought you said you could take up to three people with you," said the now awakened Sasami.

"Yes, I have to go. Tenchi is also coming."

"WHAT!"

"There are things out there that I wouldn't stand a chance against, even with all of my technology. You are one of the strongest beings I've ever encountered. I need you."

"Ok! Ok! I don't like it, but I had a feeling that I was going to be going, anyway."

"Well, if Tenchi's going, than I'm going, too," insisted Ayeka.

"And why's that?"

"Judging from your appearance, I wouldn't leave Tenchi with you for a second. Who knows what you have planned while you had him all to yourself?"

Washu winced at Ayeka's accusation.

"That's a bit over the top, isn't it, princess?" snapped Ryoko.

"But I guess I did deserve that," added Washu. "If you want, than you can come, too."

"Well, somebody's gonna have to keep you guys outta trouble," said Ryoko. "Besides, I already put my two cents worth in last night. No way I'm letting you do with without me. Besides, now with Tenchi and Ayeka going, you better believe I'm going with you."

"Meow!" responded Ryo-Ohki, who was now raising her hand in her little girl form.

"Now I'm not sure if you count as a person or equipment," wondered Washu.

"Grrrr..." as she reverted back to 'cabbit' mode.

"Ok, we'll give it a shot. Is everybody ok with this..." several hands went up, "besides the obvious 'this is too dangerous' and 'why does Tenchi have to go?' arguments?" every hand made a tactical retreat back into the water. "Good. We'll be using my lab as our temporary base of interdimensional operations. Any supplies we need or can use will be stored there. I'll give my team more details as we..." a hand went up, grabbing a sigh from the scientist. "Yes, Mihoshi?"

"Umm, what's a dimensional cluster again?"

Washu sighed once again. "You know what a dimension is, right?"

"Yes."

That caught Washu off guard for a moment. "And how about parallel dimensions?"

"I have a pen pal in one."

Half the room nearly drowned after they pratfell.

"Ok, a dimensional cluster is like a bunch of parallel dimensions close together...like a family of dimensions. They're very similar, but different."

"Oh, I get it. So you're going to visit some relatives!"

Any amazement she had toward Mihoshi plummeted. "Yeah, you could say that," she answered as she rubbed her temples.

(B-D)

"So, we all ready?"

Tenchi, Ryoko, Ryo-Ohki, and Ayeka nodded. Only Ryoko had slept well the night before, while the others only slept lightly and waking often. Now they had adrenaline rushing through them, waking them up and keeping them alert. They were all still dressed the same way as they always were.

"Be safe," wished Noike.

"Remember your training, Tenchi," said Grandpa.

"You'll be ok, Ayeka," said Sasami.

"Good luck, everybody!" exclaimed Mihoshi.

They all waved as Washu pressed the button on her new watch, which just happened to be the C.I.T. A large, circular portal swirling with a psychedelic mix of blue and white appeared, with the occasional flash of lightning. Never mind the gentle 20mph breeze.

"Um, is that lightning safe?" asked Ryoko, not expecting to be drowned out by the loud rumble emitted by the portal.

"Ok," yelled Washu as she spoke over the noise of the portal, "This portal will last until the last person goes through or two minutes, whichever comes first, so we have to make sure that we all go through or it'll take forever for me to relocate that particular dimension again. Got it?" She got all affirmative nods. "Good. Let's go!"

The four warriors and the cabbit leapt through the portal, not knowing what to expect. They landed as one would normally land after leaping they way they had. They stood there, looking around, as the wind blew through their hair and the weird mix of blue and white overriding their normal color scheme, causing Ryo-Ohki's eyes to start swirling. Washu took out her laptop, only to find that she couldn't. From this she deduced that she couldn't summon her technology while between dimensions, a little factoid that she had somehow overlooked. Tenchi and Ayeka simply started around in wonderment, watching the pretty dual-colored show. Ryoko started doing a little dance, as the swirling colors and loud rumble reminded her of one of her favorite clubs back from her pirating days. After what seemed like a minute but was actually about fifteen seconds, they finally arrived.

_**POP!**_

The four looked around, not expecting to hear a pop. They were in a forest almost completely untouched by man.

"So, are we all here?" asked Washu.

"Yeah, I think so," replied Tenchi, "but what's that music?"

"Yeah, wasn't expecting to hear music in the middle of...hey, wait a minute, where the heck are we, anyway?"

"You would be about twenty miles northwest of Tokyo."

"Oh, thanks...WHA?"

The four spun around to meet this unknown voice behind them only to find a young man crouched there, petting Ryo-Ohki. It appeared like he just finished working out.

"So tell me, what's a group of aliens like you guys doing here on Earth? Do you come in peace or do you plan on destroying everything known to man?"

(B-D)


	4. Final Judgment: Recruitment

Disclaimer: I don't own Tenchi. All I own are the clothes on my back and the computer I'm typing on…and a car…and a house…but not Tenchi. :-)

_**Final Judgment: Recruitment**_

They had only just begun their journey, and already they're in trouble. This person just happened to be able to sneak up on them and now had Ryo-Ohki at his complete mercy. Well, perhaps "sneak" is a bit strong, considering they just appeared in his camp with an actual "pop" sound effect. And maybe "complete mercy" was a tab strong, too, considering that he was simply petting her and she was enjoying herself immensely. If that wasn't enough, he had already realized, or at least he had called them aliens, which Washu wasn't sure if this dimension had encountered yet. She decided to err on the side of caution and try to talk themselves out of this situation.

"Um…what make you think we're aliens? We're just normal people…"

"Who suddenly appear in the middle of the forest, miles away from civilization, with a POP? That's not normal."

"Ok, so how do you know if we didn't appear here by magic?" as she made the hocus pocus hand motions.

"Well, I have been trained in the detection of magic, and although I'm not that great at it, I can tell you guys don't have any, but please to be explaining why that girl not only has a tail but is floating three inches off the ground?"

All eyes shot at Ryoko, as she just then noticed that she was indeed floating. She smiled sheepishly as she dropped to the ground.

"Well, ok, you got us," conceded Tenchi. "Most of us are aliens, but we come in peace."

"So where did you guys come from, then?"

"Um, would you believe a another dimension?" asked Ayeka.

She glanced about at the looks she received from her group as the guy stood up.

"Oh, so if I'm to believe your story, you're either on vacation or you're a group of interdimensional travelers on some mission to save the universe, right?"

Washu appraised this interesting human. He stood at about six feet tall and seemed to be African-American who spoke impressive Japanese. He had a large build and a short haircut. Now that he was standing she could tell that he was some kind of fighter. "I'm impressed. I didn't think people would know about interdimensional travel."

"Well, most people here just believe it to be science fiction, but my family has had more than our fair share of dimensional trips. It's happened so much that it's a part of our school."

"What school on Earth incorporates interdimensional travel into their curriculum?" asked Washu.

"Allow me to introduce myself," he said with a sweeping bow. "I am Guy Bogard Hyabusa of the Old School Fighting Gamer's School of Martial Arts, at your service."

The four stared blankly at Guy for a few seconds.

"So, are you saying that you're willing to help us, then?" asked Tenchi.

"Don't see why not. I'm not getting any bad vibes from you yet, which is good. So until you give me reason not to trust you, please allow this gaigin to help."

"Sounds fair enough," replied Washu.

They sat down around Guy's campfire, as he was in the middle of cooking some beef stew for lunch and he gave a brief synopsis of his dimension.

"So, you have to recruit people from various dimensions in order to save two whole dimensional clusters? Wow, that's much."

"Yeah, and all we have are clues as to who to recruit."

"So, Washu, right? K, what's the clue for here?"

Washu pulled out her laptop, glad that she could access it again, and pulled up the recruitment file. "Let's see…we were supposed to come here, but it only says 'Get the first Guy you find.' Not much of a clue, huh?"

"Wait a minute, why is guy capitalized in the clue?" asked Tenchi.

"Wow, that's classic," said Guy. "Nothing like a simple word puzzle to get the mind going…" his voice trailed off for a second, "…oy…"

"What?" asked Ryoko as she saw Guy cringe.

"If this is what I think it is, that means I'm your first recruit."

"Well that's mighty convenient, don't you think?" quipped Ayeka.

"And I think you're it for here, too. The next dimension we go to has three clues."

Guy sighed as he stood and went to his backpack. He rummaged through it for a few seconds before pulling out a cell phone. He looked at it and tossed it back into his pack with a grumble.

"Figures, the one time I need to call dad and I have no signal. Hmm, Washu, do you have internet access with that floating keyboard thingie?"

"Well, normally I don't let anybody use my computer, but I'll let you slide this time."

"Thanks. I'll just be a few moments. He's almost always online. Just gotta tell him that my training journey's taken an even weirder turn than it did a few weeks ago." He started typing on Washu's keyboard. "Wow, this is nice."

"What happened a few weeks ago?" asked curiosity getting the better of her.

"Oh, just ran into a guy who hits like a sledgehammer and could destroy walls with a finger and fighting a man-sized talking frog and his artificially love struck bodyguards who fought with knives and take-out food. I could've sworn I was in Chrono Trigger when I saw that thing…" he glanced up to see everyone again staring blankly at him. Guy sighed once again. "Nevermind."

(B-D)

After a half hour of communication and downloading with his father, Guy was finally ready to go.

"Thanks again for letting me download that stuff," said Guy.

"Don't worry about it. Normally I don't let other people use my laptop, but this is far for normal."

"Agreed."

"So what was that large file you downloaded, anyway?"

"Oh, it's a version of a tome passed down through my family for generations. As his initiation, dad managed to get it online on my family's secure website."

"Why would you need something like that?" asked Ayeka.

"Perhaps the title may explain things. It's the _Gamer's Guide to Interdimensional Travel_." He waited a few seconds as the now usually blank looks stared back at him. "Like I said, my family has a lot of history going to different dimensions and stuff. This is basically a guide of conduct, like rule number one is not mistaking someone you know here with their counterpart somewhere else and such. My ancestor wrote this back in the Middle Ages, and was used about seven times since. Looks like I'm the lucky one this generation."

"Fascinating," said Washu. "That is an interesting piece of foresight. Well, are we ready to go?"

"Yea, let's blow this joint," exclaimed Ryoko. "I'm getting tired of all these trees."

"I find it quite relaxing, actually," replied Ayeka.

Tenchi just shook his head. "I just hope recruiting everybody is going to be this easy."

Guy cringed. "Please…don't say that. Every time someone says something like that something almost always goes horribly wrong."

"Sheesh, not very optimistic, are you, Guy?"

"You obviously haven't played many video games, Tenchi."

"Huh?"

"Nevermind, let's just get going."

"Ok," answered Washu as she pressed the button.

A large, circular portal swirling with a psychedelic mix of blue and white appeared, with the occasional flash of lightning. Never mind the gentle 20mph breeze.

"Um, is that lightning safe?" asked Guy, not expecting to be drowned out by the loud rumble emitted by the portal.

"Alright," yelled Washu, again not hearing the comment about the lightning, "let's go!"

Guy was about to leap into the portal until he saw the others cautiously walk in. He followed suit, noting that this was the only difference between this and that show he saw as a kid called _Sliders_. Guy kept his balance as he took in the blue and white swirl overriding his color scheme. Having over twenty years of gaming experience, he was thusly unaffected by the swirl once he regained his composure. He noticed Ryo-Ohki doing the dizzy dance and Ryoko doing some other kind of dance when the ride was suddenly over.

_**POP!**_

They looked around, this time they were in front of a Japanese high school with a large face clock on it's tower. It was apparent the school had just let out and a bunch of students in their school uniforms were leaving the campus. All of the girls had modest light blue dress uniforms while the boys had the average dark uniforms with long sleeved shirts and pants.

"Ok, at least we're in a city this time," said Ryoko, as she made sure she had her feet on the ground this time.

"Yeah, but where…?" started Tenchi as someone interrupted him.

"Um, excuse me." The group turned to see a teenaged boy wearing black drawstring pants and a yellow shirt. He also had a backpack at least twice the size of Guy's and a red bamboo umbrella strapped on top. "Could you tell me where Furinkan High School is?"

The group simultaneously glanced at the sigh of the school next to them, signifying that this was the school he was looking for. They all looked back at him and pointed toward the sign. The fact that they did this in perfect synchronization flew beneath his notice. Then Guy finally got a flash of recognition.

"Hey, wait a minute. Aren't you Ryoga?"

"Yeah, I am. Who are you?"

Guy smacked his forehead as he remembered the first rule of _Gamer's Guide to Interdimensional Travel_.

(B-D)

A/N

I'm sorry for a delay in updating, but I was trying to figure out how I was going to rectify a huge miscalculation in writing this story. To prevent spoilers, I'm not going to say what section this story will appear in next until the end of the chapter. As you may have noticed, this story will appear in the Ranma ½ section next chapter. It was supposed to go there this chapter, but I forgot to tell you last update. I'll be letting you guys know where I'm going in these author's notes from now on.

In case you're wondering who the heck Guy is, he's an original character out of my _Final Judgment: Kodachi_ fic. He was only in there for two chapters, but his skills will help the JLA much. Don't worry, he'll remain a support character, not an all-powerful god. Oh, and I do own Guy, so don't steal him. :-)

Lastly, I have a tentative roster for the JLA, but I know I'm missing a few pieces. I'm open to suggestions. And nobody from the Dragonball series. They're too powerful. Just about anything else is still fair game. I'll consider all suggestions within reason (no LA Blue Girl stuff or anything) and make changes accordingly, but regardless, the basic plot will remain. And yes, this is a heckofa plot I got going here. Other notes won't be this long, and I'm looking forward to hearing from you guys. Later. (B-D)


	5. Recruitment 1dot5

_Disclaimer:_ I don't own neither Ranma ½ nor Tenchi Muyo. I do, however, own Guy as shown here by my clever use of symbols and a "p" (:-p)--)--(

* * *

_**Recruitment ½**_

The day had started like any other day. The sun was shining, the birds were singing, and Ranma was one with the sky. Indeed, this was normal, as Akane had once again punted him into LEO when he referred to her cooking as some kind of alien life on Earth. Ranma was on guard today, however, so Genma's "surprise" attack on him once he landed next to the koi pond earned him his first mourning free of change. Well, it would've been free of change had that nice old lady inexplicably watering her sidewalk hadn't hit him on their way to school. Indeed, everything was again back to normal as now Ranma-chan heard a ringing in her ear. If she hadn't been grumbling about the old lady, she would've noticed that the ringing was coming from behind.

_**ring! ring! CRASH! ring! ring!**_

Ranma-chan somehow managed to hold her ground, despite being bent back in a position any limbo champion would envy, holding not only her own weight, but also that of a disturbingly sexy Chinese girl with purple hair mounted on her bike. The fact that this was all taking place on top of a chain-linked fence was also slightly impressive.

"Nihao, Ranma!"

"Aww, man, not again, Shampoo!" exclaimed Ranma-chan.

Akane glared at Ranma, her anger building. Suddenly she blinked as things went weird.

"Do Ranma know where stupid Mousse is?"

Ranma-chan blinked, as she still supported the two on top of the fence.

"Um…no," she said through the bicycle tire, "haven't seen him. Why?"

"Stupid duck boy no come home after delivery last night, so Shampoo now have deliver all day, so not can date Ranma today. If you find, beat to pulp, then drag body back to shop, is okay?" she said cutely.

"Um, sure…" Ranma-chan replied.

"K. Bye-bye now."

And Shampoo continued on her way as she finally finished running over Ranma-chan. They remained for a moment before Akane spoke up.

"Are you going to just lie there or are you going to hurry up and get to school?"

"Well, excuse me for getting run over."

"Hhmf," she snorted as she continued her run.

Ranma-chan slowly stood and dusted herself off. "Sheesh, like that uncute tomboy actually noticed how weird that was." **_SMACK!_** Said Akane's schoolbag as planted itself on his face. She peeled it off to see Akane still running and turn the corner, without her bag. "How does she keep doing that?" she wondered as she started to roof-hop.

(B-D)

Something was off, that can no longer be denied. After running into Shampoo earlier they still managed to get to school on time. They only had three minutes to get past Kuno and still make it to class before they were late. They made it, which is why Ranma was concerned. For the first time in months, Kuno was a no-show. What was now routine for them was slowly derailing around him and he had no idea what was going on anymore. Things were supposed to be more chaotic, not less. That's when his well-developed sense of paranoia kicked in. Stuff calms down now, and as soon as he relaxes things blow up in his face.

During lunch he avoided Akane like the plague, not because she was still a little miffed at him, but because she had brought him lunch. Paranoia was replaced by survival instinct, which made it all the easier for Ukyou to swoop in and capture Ranma for lunch. The world's best okonomiyaki verses stuff not even Godzilla would eat? Gee, tough choice. It was after lunch that Ranma's paranoia returned in full force, however, as Akane wasn't in her seat for class. One period wouldn't have been too bad, but with one period left and still no Akane.

"You ok, sugar?"

Ranma jumped out of his seat as Ukyou giggled. He had been so consumed with Akane not being in class that he completely missed the bell and everybody else leaving.

"Geez, don't do that!"

"What's on your mind, Ran-chan? It's not often I can sneak up on you like that, especially without even trying."

"Oh, it's nothing…"

"It's Akane, isn't it?"

Ranma flinched.

"It's just…she usually says something if she was gonna miss class or somethin'. It's not like I'm worried or nothin'."

"Nobody said you were," she said with a sigh. "Wanna ask Nabiki where she is?"

Ranma perked up a little, which was immediately negated by the prospect of having to deal with Nabiki.

"I don't think we could afford…"

"Hey, you guys," said Nabiki from the classroom door, "have you seen Akane anywhere? We were supposed to meet up and get a few things for Kasumi after school."

Ranma and Ukyou glanced at each other, seeming to understand exactly what the other was thinking.

"We haven't seen her since lunchtime, Nabiki," answered Ukyou.

Nabiki buried her face in her hand for a moment.

"Dang, that means nobody's seen her since lunch. This is all your fault, you know."

"What'd I do this time?" exclaimed Ranma.

"She was looking for you all through lunch, and that's the last anybody's heard about her today."

"Great!" he yelled as he threw his arms up. "I knew something was gonna happen sooner or later. Fine, I'll go look for her."

"Like nobody saw that coming," chided Ukyou, earning a glare from Ranma.

"She better not've gotten kidnapped again or somethin'," he grumbled as he stomped out of the room past Nabiki.

Ukyou walked out also, giving Ranma some space and found herself walking along side Nabiki.

"You think she was kidnapped again, Nabiki?"

"I hope not. Daddy's a complete mess whenever she does?"

"I wonder why Akane's the one who always gets kidnapped?"

"I've wondered that, too. Maybe it's because of all the time she spends with Ranma or something. I'm just glad it's not me."

"I'd feel sorry for whoever try to pull something like that on you."

"I haven't thought of that," she said after a moment of contemplation. "Nah, it'd be a waste of time, anyway, especially if he was dirt poor like that tea ceremony guy or that 'dog boy.'"

"I guess that's one way of looking at it," she said as they reached the gate of the school. "Well, I'll see you later. If Ranma-honey can't find her, give me a call and I'll help look, too."

"Thanks, we'd appreciate that."

And the two split company. Nabiki turned left and headed home, amusedly noting a group of oddly dressed people giving directions to Ryoga.

(B-D)

"Thanks again," said Ryoga as he went toward and past the school he was looking for.

"Geez, he defies all the laws of navigation," realized Washu.

"Sheesh, I didn't think I'd get outta that one," said Guy.

"And I thought you knew better than to break the first rule of your travel guide," mocked Ayeka as Guy shrugged.

"_Extreme Martial Artist_ magazine?" said Ryoko. "Where'd you get THAT idea from?"

"I had thought about subscribing to it when I was younger, but I figured that…"

"There's one of our targets!" exclaimed Washu as she pointed to a boy walking down the street.

"Who?" asked Tenchi.

"That guy over there seems to have a giant spatula on his back."

"What are you talking about?" asked Ayeka.

"The first clue is the phrase 'Battle Spatula.' Considering how he's got that thing strapped to his back, it's got to be for battle."

"So what should we do?" asked Tenchi. "It's not like we can just walk up to him and ask him to join us."

"Tell me about it," replied Guy. "That usually works for video games, not real life."

"Let's just follow her and see what happens," said Ryoko.

"That would just make him paranoid against us," said Guy.

"Guy's right," said Washu. "Let's just go up to him and start up a conversation."

"You sure about that?" asked Ryoko.

"You have any better ideas besides stalking our future allies?"

Ryoko sighed in concession as the group followed the "boy" with the giant spatula on his back.

(B-D)

"So I take it that everyone is hungry," observed Ayeka.

"Sure am," said Ryoko.

"Yeah, I didn't eat much for lunch today," said Guy.

"Well," said Tenchi as they stood before the now open _Ucchan's_, "looks like okonomiyaki tonight."

They all walked in to a cozy restaurant and a warm smile by the cook behind the grill. Strange thing, though, is that they knew that the boy was here, but up this close he seemed more feminine than from a distance. The sash of mini spatulas and her battle spatula on her back all but confirmed that this was the person they were looking for.

"Welcome to Okonomiyaki Ucchan's, home of the world's best okonomiyaki. What'll it be, folks?"

"Wow, nice place," said Tenchi.

"Yeah, but I doubt this place has okonomiyaki as good as that one place I went to a few months back," said Guy.

Suddenly all but the grill was silent. If he had said anything else, life would have resumed, but that…that was a direct attack on her lifestyle, or at least, that's how she heard it.

"Take a seat over there, you guys. YOU!" she exclaimed as she pointed at Guy. "You will sit here at the grill as I accept your challenge."

"Challenge?"

"You say there's better okonomiyaki out there. I think not, sugar."

"Oh, that…" he glanced at his party as they took seats at the tables to the side of the grill. Washu was smirking. "I didn't mean…"

"Sit."

"Yes, ma'am."

Guy sat before the okonomiyaki chef as she cooked up a shrimp and seaweed okonomiyaki in a matter of minutes. All were impressed by the show, especially Guy, who had a front row seat. After two minutes and twenty-six and a half seconds Guy was presented with his meal.

"Go ahead," she said with a smile, "try it."

"Um…" he glanced at his party again. Ryoko and Ayeka seemed to be making a bet with each other as Washu was simply laughing her face off. Seeing no support whatsoever from his "teammates," he took up a pair of chopsticks and tried a piece.

Now, for those unfamiliar with Nerimian culture, many of the local residents and many high school students have lived entirely on either the all-raman diet or the all- okonomiyaki diet from only one of two restaurants in the district. Sure, the way they were prepared was actually nutritious and healthy for a human body, but unlike most healthy food like "unmeat" (veggie or soy meat). This stuff actually tasted really good without alimentation for taste.

As this was the case, it was a good thing Guy was sitting down, because even while seated his knees grew weak and he lost over eighty percent of his tongue functions as it went into auto-pilot as it attempted to chase the taste of the okonomiyaki where ever it went in his mouth. He mouth wept as he finally swallowed, causing much rejoicing of the esophagus, as the warmth of the okonomiyaki made it's way down to his stomach. The stomach acids bubbled with glee as it had finally received something worth dissolving. Overall, it was an enjoyable experience, as duly noted by his eyes rolling up into his skull like Frogger getting hit by a Mack truck. Needless to say, Ukyou was pleased with the result. She was surprised, however, at what Guy had to say about it.

"This must be Kuonji…" Guy mumbled blissfully.

Ukyou's jaw dropped as she heard this, and waited for him to recover slightly.

"And how would you know about them?"

Washu could barely keep herself from laughing out loud as Guy continued to break the rules from his own family tome. She did find it interesting, but this spectacle was just splitting her sides.

"I never forget good food," he said with slurred speech and still unaware of his surroundings, "and that was the best okonomiyaki I've ever tasted. This is right up there, but it's been waaaaayyyyy too long since I've been blessed with such a taste until today."

Ukyou smiled at this. Although she claimed to be the best, she knew that only her own father could make better okonomiyaki, albeit just barely at this point in her life. Just a couple more years and…she figured to ask him a few questions. She went ahead and took everybody's orders as Guy recovered from his first bite. Ryoko couldn't wait to sink her teeth into this stuff. Tenchi drooled a little as Ayeka managed to hide her droll as well. Washu was too busy trying not to laugh to drool.

"So," started Ukyou as she served everyone. Guy was in no condition for conversation, so she figured to talk to his friends instead. "What're you guys in town for? Surely you got other reasons for coming to this disaster area other than following me and insulting my family's art."

Everyone else froze.

"I see," said Washu, "you're pretty observant, aren't you?" Ukyou smiled. "We didn't come here for fun, um…miss…"

"Ukyou Kuonji, but you can call me Ukyou.."

"Thank you, Ukyou. Believe it or not we came here looking for some help."

"Help, huh? Well, I guess you came to the right place. Whadda you need help with?"

"Would you believe 'to save the universe'?"

Ukyou stared at her for a moment before pounding the table as she nearly laughed herself off her feet and she struggled to find a seat. Tenchi just buried his face in his hands as Ryoko and Ayeka just stared at Washu. Guy was still in okonomiyaki heaven. After a few moments Ukyou wiped the tears from her eyes and was gasping for breath. She hadn't laughed that hard in a long time, and their seriousness just made it all the funnier.

"That…has got…to be the funniest thing I've…ever heard. HAHAHAHAHA!"

"You sure it was a good idea to just come out like that?" asked Ryoko.

"I must admit," inserted Ayeka, "I was not expecting that kind of reaction."

"Neither was I," Washu replied. "She taking this a whole lot better than I thought."

Ukyou hadn't been oblivious to this part of the conversation, and she stopped laughing as she heard them talk.

"Wait, don't tell that you were serious…"

"Well, if you'll take a look at my computer screen here," Washu started as her transparent keyboard appeared above the table.

"Whoa, that's amazing!" she awed.

"It sure is…" sighed Guy as he finally managed to eat another slice of heaven.

"You think this is something," smirked Washu, "Just wait till you find out who sent us."

(B-D)

"You know that I'm gonna need some real proof of this, right?" said Ukyou as she and the others were walking down the street.

"It is rather hard to believe," said Ayeka, "but we saw her after she met with Him. Her face was literally glowing."

"Man, that's weird, even by our standards."

"You must have some high standards of weirdness here," said Tenchi as he noticed a panda jumping from roof to roof in the distance. His eyesight was pretty good, even though it was night already.

"And thanks for coming along to help find my friend. She seems to have a knack for getting kidnapped."

"It's our pleasure," returned Washu. "It's the least we could do. I have a feeling that we'll be fighting together for a while. I'm just glad you don't think we're crazy or anything."

"Oh, I don't think, I know you're crazy, It's just that you have to be crazy to visit here, or completely clueless."

"So how are we supposed to find this person, anyway?" asked Ryoko. "It's not like she has a homing beacon or something."

"Good idea," said Washu. "I'll start working on some in case we get separated."

"Heh, why not make them communicators while you're at it," joked Guy. "That way we'll be a complete rip-off of the Justice League."

"Ha, ha, very funny," Washu said snidely. "But I do like that name, though. Where'd you get it from?"

"You haven't heard…oh, right, different dimension. It's a cartoon that comes on cable TV on Saturdays. You guys must not have it."

"You guys can work on your group name later," said Ukyou. "We're here."

Everyone looked up and saw an impressive home before them. To most, this was the centerpiece of the massive tapestry of chaos, but to them, it was an impressively large home complete with dojo. Guy was the first to notice the challenge sign.

"Anything Goes Martial Arts, eh?" said Guy. "That's a new one for me."

"Believe me, Ranma-honey's the best there is."

"Then I must challenge him sometime before we leave."

"You're askin' for it, then," she said with a smile as she knocked on the door, "but you might want to hold that thought for a while."

The door opened before them and they were greeted with a smile warmer than fresh apple pie on a summer day. Washu's senses kicked in, but stayed silent.

"Welcome back, Ukyou. And I see you've brought some friends over. Hello, my name is Kasumi Tendo "she said with a bow. "Please, come in, and please try to stay on the ground. Father's not doing so well with Akane missing and floating girls would just make him worse."

All eyes shot back at Ryoko again, as she just noticed that she was floating again.

"Geez, sorry. Bad habit."

"It's all right. Please, come in."

After a moment to take off their shoes, Tenchi made an observation.

"Was it me or did she take Ryoko floating unnaturally in the air like nothing?"

"Nothing seems to get to her," answered Ukyou, who was still glancing at Ryoko occasionally. "I don't know how she does it."

"I might," mumbled Washu, "if my theory's right…"

"What was that, Washu?" asked Guy.

"Nothing," she answered too quickly.

They all came to the family room to a seen of pure and total chaos. Ranma was being pulled in opposite directions by Shampoo on his right and Kodachi in her teal leotard on his left. Genma was trying to console a wailing Soun while Cologne was speaking to Nabiki at the table. Everything stopped as they all saw Ukyou and a group of people they had never seen before. Shampoo and Kodachi glared at the potential rivals, then double-blinked when they saw Tenchi. His presence was enough to cause their grip on Ranma to loosen enough for him to break free and approach them.

"Yo, Ucchan, who're these people?" asked the pig-tailed one.

"They're some new friends from out of town. They said they'd help us find Akan…"

Before anybody could register, Soun Tendo was on his knees before Tenchi, grabbing him by his shirt and started wailing.

"Oh, thank you for helping to find my daughter! To be so kind as to help total strangers…I don't know how I could repay you…"

"Um…don't…worry about it…" said Tenchi, unused to being cried on by a full-grown man.

Ryoko inched toward Ukyou. "Is he always like that?"

"Yep, especially in this situation." Ukyou then turned to face Ranma. "Ran-chan, this is Washu, Ryoko, um…Ayeka, Tenchi, and…Guy, right?"

"Yeah."

"Myeh!"

"Oh, and what's…uh oh!"

The wave of panic emanating from Ranma could be felt by all, as Ryo-Ohki had jumped off of Ryoko's shoulder and onto Ranma's head. Ranma started running around with Ryo-Ohki hanging on for dear life as Ryoko gave chase, running after them to save her cabbit.

"AAARRRRGGGGGHHHHH! GET IT OFF ME! GET IT OFF MEEEE!"

"What's with him?" asked Washu.

"He's afraid of cats," deadpanned Ukyou, having seen this way too many times.

"Tenchi?"

"Might as well, Guy," he shrugged.

Tenchi and Guy ran on an intercept course to tackle Ranma so they could get Ryo-Ohki away from him. This, unfortunately, only added to the mayhem as Ranma's natural dodging ability caused them to miss… by a lot. Instead of tackling Ranma they ended up catching a lot of air and a free trip to the koi pond. Ranma joined them shortly, as he tripped over one of the surrounding rocks. Ryo-Ohki was the first to get out, trying to get away from The Crazy Man. Guy and Tenchi finally broke the surface, shocked at how deep this seemingly shallow pond was. They saw Ranma-chan floating in front of them, so they began to lift him out of the water. Washu was the first to notice.

"What happened to his hair?"

"WHAT THE!" yelled Guy as he suddenly dropped the upper portion of Ranma-chan that he was lifting, leaving Tenchi to fall with her back into the pond.

"Oww, what'cha do that for, you jerk!" yelled Ranma-chan.

"Wait a minute, I thought you were a guy?" asked Guy.

"I am a guy. Wanna make somethin' of it?"

"Than why the heck do you have breasts, then?"

"Because…uh? Aww, man."

"You there!" yelled Kodachi as everyone came out to the back yard. "What have you done with my darling Ranma-sama?"

"Not now, Kodachi."

"You harlot, you'll tell me where he is right now!"

"I'm kinda curious myself," replied Guy. "I could've sworn you had black hair a minute ago."

"That's not normal," Tenchi finally said.

"This is weird, even for us," sad Ryoko to Ayeka as she was calming down Ryo-Ohki.

"I must agree. Is it me or did that young man just turn into a young woman when she fell in?"

"Seems like it," answered Washu.

"Wow, you guys sure are observant," chided Nabiki as she ate her cookie.

"Cut 'em some slack, Nabiki," defended Ukyou, "They're new here."

"Snack time, everyone!" called Kasumi.

(B-D)

"And hot water changes me back," said the wet Ranma as he finished explaining his curse. The introductions had been done over cookies and Kodachi had made a convenient trip to the bathroom, missing the part about Ranma's curse. "Um, could you please stop that?"

"But this is so fascinating!" exclaimed Washu as she poured cold water on him, completely absorbed in this new phenomenon. "Only a few initial readings and I'm certain that you're a walking, breathing, living chaos point! This is incredibly rare."

Ryoko grabbed Washu by the ear and started dragging her away.

"Now's not the time, mom!"

"But I want him as my guinea pig!"

"I don't like the sound of that," said Ranma as she pour hot water over herself..

"Believe me, it's worse than you think," replied Tenchi.

"Man, she sure can get crazy, huh," said Guy.

"Just be glad that Kodachi's still in the bathroom," said Ukyou.

"A-HEM!"

All attention went to the source of this noise, which happened to be Cologne.

"Now that the introductions and explanations have been taken care of, perhaps we can get to the matter at hand."

"Oh yeah," said Ryoko. "I knew there was some reason why we were here."

Cologne eyed her cautiously and continued. "As we all know, Akane has once again gone missing. What is unusual this time is that Mousse has also been missing since last night."

"Not to mention my brother-dear yesterday mourning," inserted Kodachi, now finally finished with her appointment with nature.

"Thus we may have something more then a mere kidnapping. These three have very little in common, and none of them are very easy to take without some kind of commotion."

"Hmm, I wonder," said Washu as she brought up her keyboard. The cast of Ranma save Ukyou stared in amazement at the transparent keyboard floating before her. Washu typed in a few things and a series of beeps indicated that she found something. "Ah ha! I thought so. We aren't the only dimensionally displaced beings here." Washu looked up from her screen to see half of the room nodding in understanding, and the other half staring at her. "Hmm, how to explain this…you see, we're travelers from a different dimension and we're on a mission to save a lot of lives. Unfortunately we aren't enough to handle the situation, so we're going to several different dimensions to pick up heroes to help us. Ukyou, here, is one of three that we need from here. I don't really have time to check the other two clues to see who the others are, as this missing persons mission sort of takes precedence at the moment…" She glanced around again. "Did I lose anybody?"

They glanced at each other for a moment when Ranma spoke up.

"I think you lost us somewhere around a different dimension?"

"So, the legend has come to pass at last," said Cologne.

"Oh, I should've known that the Amazons would have something for this."

That earned Ranma a whack upside the head.

"All I can say is that we can trust these people, and, believe it or not, their story as well." Now the stares were directed at Cologne. "I'll explain more when you all get back."

"Ok," said Washu. "I see our benefactor has already left something here for us, so let's find these people so we can get on with our mission."

"And here I thought things couldn't get any crazier," said Nabiki as she looked at Shampoo.

"Ha! Now Mercenary Girl owe Shampoo one thousand yen."

"What was I thinking?" she grumbled as she paid Shampoo her bet.

(B-D)

The group of aliens and high-powered martial artists worked their way through the forest just outside of Nerima. The martial artists were surprised that these people were able to keep up with them. One of them seemed to literally fly through the air. They had lost sight of the others, only to find them actually waiting for them by the edge of the forest. They didn't know that Washu had teleportation technology. Oh well. So now Ranma had taken point, with his three remaining fiancées, followed by Washu and Tenchi, with Guy, Ryoko, and Ayeka taking up the rear.

"You don't really believe that story, do you, Ranma?"

"Like science fiction stuff like that was for real," said Ranma gruffly.

"I know it's hard to believe, sugar, but they were serious when they told me earlier."

"Surely you jest, Ukyou."

"Nope, dead serious."

"Well, as long as I'm not engaged to any of 'em, I guess I don't mind."

"Shampoo glad to hear that."

"Indeed. My plate is full enough with those present as it is. No need to add anybody else into our business."

"That would be just like pop to engage me to someone from another dimension, though…if he had the chance."

"Ranma, no even talk like that."

"Heh, I'm just sayin' I'm glad he didn't…"

_**KA-BOOM!**_

"What the!"

"Oooff!"

"Heh, Guy. You alright?"

"Yeah, just caught flat-footed."

"HEY, what're you doing, Ayeka?" yelled Ryoko in the air as everybody else made their way to them.

They saw Ayeka's eyes glowing red as she glared at them evilly. Small, seemingly wooden, cylindrical objects began to appear around her as she began to laugh.

"Heh, heh, heh. I'm just doing as I'm commanded, trespassers. None who enters Master Yuri's domain uninvited and lives. Perhaps if you prove strong enough, then you could join his great army as we conquer this first of many worlds. HAHAHAHAHA!"

Everybody else just stared at Ayeka, dumbfounded.

"Wait a minute," said Guy as the cobwebs finally cleared out of his head, "who's your master?"

"Oh, soon you shall know all too well the terrifying power that is Yuri. Soon, you, too, will obey."

"Um, correct me if I'm wrong, but don't you have like, other enemies to be fighting?"

"The allied and Soviet forces are not here, so once we conquer this world, they shall not stand a chance."

"You've got to be kidding me!" exclaimed Guy. "We've been ambushed by a video game!"

(B-D)


	6. JLA vs Team Yuri Control Established

_**JLA vs. Team Yuri – Battle Control Established**_

"You've got to be kidding me!" exclaimed Guy. "We've been ambushed by a video game!"

"What?" exclaimed half the party.

"Now you all shall die!" yelled Ayeka.

_**KA-BOOM!**_

A large explosion centered around Ayeka spread out in all directions as most explosions tend to do, but a good portion was blocked by Tenchi as he deployed his Light-Hawk Wings.

"Whoa, nice defense!" exclaimed Ranma.

"Never mind that," yelled Tenchi, "get going!"

"But we can't leave you…" started Washu.

"Tenchi, you go with them!" yelled Ryoko. "I'll hold her off."

"What?"

"Look, they need you with them. Besides, I can handle miss high and mighty evil princess." She smirked.

"Are you sure about that?" asked Washu.

"Yeah. Ryo-Ohki, you go with them, too. No need for her to hold us both up."

"Myeh!"

"I'll be fine, just go!"

And with that, Ryoko chain-teleported over Tenchi's shield and into the continuing explosion. Soon it stopped amidst the sound of a high-energy battle.

"This is our opening, people!" yelled Guy. "Let's go!"

"But what about…" started Ranma.

"Move it! My daughter can take care of this."

Ranma grumbled under his breath as he turned and ran with the rest of the group. Only once they were far enough that the battle sounded distant did they finally slow down.

"Ok, someone mind telling me why your friend just went ballistic on us back there?" demanded Ukyou.

"Shampoo agree. No can fight side-by-side with crazy people who turn at moment's notice."

"Look," started Washu, "I don't know what happened to her, either…"

"I think I do," interrupted Guy.

"Then you had best explain yourself," said Kodachi.

"Ok, but I'm finding this hard to believe myself. Heck, if she didn't mention Yuri's name I'd have no idea, either."

"Not to mention something about being ambushed by a video game?"

"Who the heck is this 'Yuri' guy, anyway?" asked Ranma.

"And correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't the Soviet Union fall back in the early 90's?" asked Tenchi.

"Yeah, I think it did," answered Ukyou.

"But that doesn't matter in this case, guys," said Guy. "Just hear me out cause I know already that this is just crazy. Yuri is the power behind the leader of a pacified Soviet Union that had secretly built a huge army and invaded the United States, conquering most of it within days. They fought back, however, and pushed the Soviet invasion back…until Yuri played his hand and activated several huge mind-control devices across the planet. One device in San Francisco malfunctioned, allowing the allied forces to used Einstein's newest invention called a 'Chronosphere' to go back in time and stop Yuri's threat before it could happen. At least, that's the summery of the video game called _Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2: Yuri's Revenge_."

"You're right, Guy, you are crazy," said Ranma.

"Tell me about it…wait, that was a crack at me, wasn't it? Aheh, just wait till you hear about what type of units he uses. He has troops that attack using psychic blasts from their minds, uses genetic manipulation to turn normal people into muscle-bound freaks called brutes, and even makes clones of himself whose sole purpose is to take control of the minds of enemy units. Does that last ability remind you of something?"

"So you're saying that Ayeka was taken over by one of these mind-controlling clones of this Yuri person?" asked Washu, being the only one present that could successfully translate Guy's fantastic tale.

"Exactly. The only problem is that that's supposed to be a video game, not real life."

"Jesus did say that there were other forces out there that are trying to take advantage of the war. Maybe there are some rifts that some of these 'other forces' are using to get into our cluster…"

"Is you serious? Shampoo no believe that video games can become real."

"Hard to believe, yes, but they could be real, just like aliens are," said Tenchi.

"Yeah right. Like there's really such a thing as acid-spitting monsters in real life," said Ranma as he skillfully ate his foot figuratively.

"Well, considering the fact that Ryoko, Ayeka, and I are aliens should be proof enough," responded Washu.

"You're kidding, right?" asked Ukyou. "But you look just like us."

"Oh, so you thought that you were the only humanoids in the universe, eh?" Washu smirked. "There are at least five hundred interplanetary humanoid civilizations in this galaxy alone, and I have the star charts and geographical information to prove it."

"Yeah, right," retorted Ranma. "You could just be making all that stuff up."

"Then try explaining those cylinder-like objects that Ayeka formed around her," questioned Guy, "or how the heck Ryoko can teleport like she did?"

"Tail Girl can teleport?"

"Yeah, and as you know, humans don't have tails, either."

"Ok, aliens aside, just how the heck are we supposed to stop this game thing?" asked Ukyou.

"Indeed. If these clones you speak of can truly control another's mind, that would explain how my brother-dear and the others could've gone missing so easily, although I do truly feel for whoever took over my brother."

"For once I gotta agree with you, Kodachi," said Ranma.

"Wow, is he really that bad?" asked Guy. Knowing stares answered him. "Riiiight. Moving on…I don't know all the different ways to beat this game. Even though my family was cross-trained in all genres of gaming, my little brother is the strategy gamer. I'm the fighting games expert, obviously, but I do know almost for a fact that to defeat a player in _Yuri's Revenge_, you have to destroy all their buildings. If their last building is gone, all their units spontaneously die."

"So you're saying that if we can destroy their whole base, then those mind control clones will die and our friends will be freed?" asked Ukyou.

"Yeah, I'm almost certain."

"You sound quite confident about that, Guy," said Washu.

"Sigh. I was hoping you wouldn't pick up on that."

"On what?" asked Tenchi.

"I honestly don't know if just the clones would die and their victims are freed…or if they die, too." Gasps surrounded him. "I know they're freed if we kill the clone, but I don't know about it if they die because their base is destroyed. I'm sorry, guys, that's the best I can do."

"So we have no choice. We need destroy base and hope for best. Is only way, yes?"

"I'm afraid Shampoo's right," replied Washu.

"You got to be kidding me!" yelled Ranma. "You mean the only way we can stop this madness is to kill them all?"

"Look, Ranma, I'm sorry, but it's a real time strategy war game. There is no game mechanic for taking out any unit or building other than death or destruction. I don't want to be responsible for anyone's death either, but Yuri has a nasty habit of making things difficult for people. If you want to save your fiancée, and Ayeka, and the others, we have to do this."

"Man, this goes against everything I believe in…"

"Is way of warrior, Ranma. Obstacle is for killing. If Yuri is in way of saving friends, than Shampoo kill."

"And have you ever killed anybody before? Huh?"

Shampoo stood shell-shocked at her airen's anger. She stood there for a moment until she could finally regain her composure.

"Shampoo want say…"

**_CLOONK!_**

Everyone was so engrossed in the conversation that nobody noticed the mallet flying at Shampoo's head until it hit her square on the left check. Everyone swung into defensive positions around Shampoo as a tree suddenly came down on top of them. Everyone managed to dive out of the way in time, with Ranma grabbing the dazed Shampoo to save her.

"Who's there?" demanded Guy.

"So, these are the trespassers that were reported on our perimeter. A boorish lot I would almost say had I not the memories of my past life to know that these are formidable foes indeed."

"Geez, I don't see why you have to talk like that all the time. For some reason the more you talk the stronger my desire to hit you becomes."

"Oh, man, that's gotta be Kuno and Akane," moaned Ranma.

Two silhouettes emerged from the trees, the mystery being completely obliterated by Ranma's big mouth…thanks a bunch, Ranma. Yes, Kuno and Akane have finally arrived.

"Brother dear?"

"So, who shall be the first to fall at the mighty sword of the Great Enforcer of Master Yuri's Empire?"

"Akane…" whispered Ranma.

"Yo, Akane," called Ukyou, "snap out of it. I know there ain't much hope for Kuno, but I know you got a strong mind on ya'. You can break this."

"I don't think so. I serve a new master, now, and he commands that you all die tonight. Especially you," as Akane points out Ranma.

"Yep, Akane's definitely in there somewhere, all right," deadpanned Ranma. "You guys go ahead. I'll beat Kuno senseless and try to snap Akane outta this mind control stuff."

"You sure about that, Ranchan?"

"I don't kill. At least this way I'll be saving my friends without having to kill anyone."

"I don't know what'll happen if you knock Kuno out, though," said Guy. "I'm not sure if the clone'll be able switch his control to you or not."

"Looks like I'll stay behind and keep Kuno off of Ranma, then," said Tenchi.

"You sure about that, sugar? Kuno's no Ranma, but he's darn good in kendo."

"Don't worry about me. I know some swordplay myself."

"Don't worry about this guy, Ucchan. I can tell he knows his stuff."

"You sure, Ranchan?"

"Yeah, now hurry up. The quicker you beat that base the better."

"I say to thee, nay. You shall have to defeat me first before you…uuhhgg!" as Ranma plants his feet into Kuno's face.

"Oh no you don't!" yelled Akane as the others ran. She was about to give chase when Tenchi blocked her way. "Get outta my way!"

"Not until Ranma gets back to you."

"Yyyyeeaaaaa!" screamed Akane as she let the hammer down, literally. She didn't expect him to block it with a bokken, however, so she was caught off balance for a few moments as Ranma landed gently next to him.

"Nice. I'm glad you're as good as I hoped you were."

"My grandpa taught me a lot about swordplay. That hammer was pretty heavy, though."

"You don't know the half of it. I'll take care of Akane now. Thanks for not hurting her."

"I wouldn't have hurt her, anyway. She's innocent."

"I know, thanks. Oh, don't bother going easy on Kuno. He's a real jerk."

Tenchi just gave Ranma a questioning glance as Ranma leapt to "spar" with his fiancée. He then faced his challenger.

"You would dare to challenge me with a sword? Surely you have no idea the pain I am about to inflict upon you."

"We'll see about that. I've always wanted to spar with someone good."

"Pheh, spar? Feeble minded dolt, this is mortal combat!"

"Not if I can help it," Tenchi replied with a smirk.

(B-D)

They ran for about a mile, occasionally looking back to where they had left the two title characters. Shampoo was very upset that Ranma had stayed, as was Kodachi and Ukyou, but Washu had managed to calm them down a little. They finally reached the edge of a clearing with several man-made structures ahead.

"This has to be Yuri's base," said the gamer. "It's purple and everything."

"Why does the color matter?" asked Ukyou.

"That's how you can tell your units apart from another player's when you both choose a similar army. Anyway, that big building over there…that's the construction yard. That's the heart and soul of this base. Destroy that and Yuri can't build any more buildings. Also watch out for a large vehicle with a few slaves working around it. That's a slave miner that's armed with machine gun turrets. He has to have at least one of them out here somewhere. We are lucky, though. It looks like they haven't found much money in this world, so his base is small and basically undefended."

"Which is precisely why he has us!" yelled a voice from above.

Everyone looked up to find dozens of eggs falling down on them, exploding on contact. As the smoke finally cleared they saw before them a young man dressed in white robes, and arms crossed with his hands within his sleeves.

"Stupid Mousse. Where you been all this time?"

"I've been one of the personal bodyguards of the next ruler of this world, 'dearest' Shampoo." She was shocked once again, this time by the sheer hatred that came in his voice. "Once we figure out the monetary system here, we will be invincible. But first, I have to kill you all."

"I take it this was the other missing person," quipped Washu.

"Yep," answered Ukyou.

"Shampoo stay here, teach stupid duck-boy lesson in Amazon authority. Rest of you go and beat base."

"Now where am I?"

"Ryoga?" gasped everyone.

"Ah, good. I made it just in time."

"Ryoga, glad you're here," said Ukyou as she approached him. "We need you're help with…wwaaa!"

_**whiff!**_

Ukyou was yanked back away from Ryoga's nasty right cross by an unexpected ribbon from behind.

"Ukyou, I'm afraid that he's not actually on our side, tonight."

"No."

"I can't believe how much I get lost now. This defies any logic known to man, it's ridiculous. Anyway, I'm here to stop you from infiltrating Master Yuri's base. Resist and die."

"Whoa, this isn't good," said Guy.

"I never thought I'd say this, but I owe you one, Kodachi."

"I would hope that you would have done the same for me, but as of now we must work together to fight Ryoga while Guy and Washu continue on to the base."

"I had a feeling that we'd have to do that sooner or later."

"No, you guys go. I'll handle Ryoga," said Guy as he stepped up.

"Hey, sugar, you have no idea what you're getting yourself…"

"As a gentleman, I can't let you ladies go into a fight with this guy while I have it relatively easy. Besides, Washu need more than one person to help her out, anyway. And as a martial artist I have to challenge him again. You see, I've fought him before in my home dimension and lost. He's the one that showed me the next level that my training had to take me. I think I'm there, but this is my first real test since that fight. Besides, that base looks like a three-member party mission, anyway. Just go, ladies. It's better for the two of you to go with her rather than the one of me. Besides, Shampoo and I will watch out for each other, right?"

"Right. Is no way I let Mousse get better of us."

"You may be able to go _C&C: Renegade_ and go inside the base and use their explosives to blow up the buildings!"

"What?"

"All right, that's enough outta you!" yelled Ryoga as he attacked Guy.

"Go on, quick!" yelled Guy as he engaged Ryoga again for the first time.

The ladies glanced at each other for a second before turning around and sprinting to the side of the construction yard. After catching their breath they finally began the last leg of their new mission.

"So what're we supposed to do, now?" asked Ukyou.

"Well, I'd imagine we do what Guy said," answered Washu, "we go inside, find some explosives, and blow stuff up."

"You make it sound so casual, I can't imagine that you understand the seriousness of the situation," scorned Kodachi.

"Oh, I know how serious this is. It's just that, considering our bigger mission, this is cakewalk. And believe me, I don't find that one bit comforting."

"Boy, you sure know how to inspire the troops, don't you?"

"Well, I am still new at this whole 'being the leader' thing."

"Good grief."

"At any rate, we'd better hurry. Who knows if Yuri has any more clones wondering around?"

"Indeed. We had no idea that they had Ryoga," commented Kodachi. "Heaven help us if any of us get taken."

"You know?" Washu perked up. "That's a good idea. Hold on a sec…"

Washu turned to one side and knelt to the ground, whispering a prayer.

"What's she doing?" asked Ukyou.

"I believe she's praying."

"You think it'll work?"

"I doubt it would hurt."

"Good point."

"Ok, we're ready," informed Washu.

"So what was that all about?" asked Ukyou.

"Simple. I was just asking Heaven to help us. We should be fine, now."

"Your faith is impressive, although I wonder just how well-founded it truly is?"

"I think you'll see. Let's go."

The girls glanced at each other once again, shrugged, and followed the grown scientist into the large gray and purple building.

(B-D)

The two combatants paused for a moment as they sized each other up once again. On one side was the princess from the most powerful empire in her home dimension, which by default gave her amazing power to wield not only in galactic policy, but was also a personal powerhouse in her own right. However, she was going up against the one creature that had nearly destroyed her family, her home, her empire, but most importantly her fiancé. She was to wed the man that had to chase her off planet and off to some distant world that she had only just discovered a few years back.

"So, you done wasting time yet or do we have to dance some more, Ayeka?"

She eyes her opponent wearily. Sure, this new mind slave boasted incredible power, even more so than those martial artists that the others had taken, but this other woman, this alien if he's reading this right, is even more powerful. He had to inform his master to make more clones to control this one, too. With these two aliens helping his cause, they would truly be invincible.

"You're power is indeed impressive. Wouldn't you mind waiting for a while so that we can allow you to join us? With you on our side we could very well conquer all of creation."

"Man, you think waaaay too highly of yourselves, you know that? There ain't no way I'm gonna let you control me."

"In that case you are too dangerous to leave alive. I will kill you now, knowing full well that you cannot bring yourself to kill your friend."

"Heh, who said anything about killing my friend? I'm just stalling you till the others figure out what the heck is going on."

"Who said they were handling things? From what I hear from my allies, all of your friends are being taken to Master Yuri as we speak. Once he has some quality time with each of you, he will no longer need us to control you, freeing us to control others like this woman now. As you can see, it is not you who is stalling, but I."

Ryoko stared at her in shock for a moment as these words sank in, or at least, she pretended to. She had learned everything about what was going on through her mental link with Ryo-Ohki and Washu, so she knew everything that they did, including the backup plan. She also knew that Washu and the other two girls were in that construction yard thing already.

"I have to say, that's a pretty good bluff, but you're not the only one with a mental link to their allies," she smirked as Ayeka's face now went into shock. "That's right, I know about you clones and how you'll die if your base is destroyed. So if you want to get back there and save your precious 'master,' I suggest you hurry up and beat me, but we both know that ain't gonna happen, now, don't we?"

Ayeka screamed in anger as she charged like a yak in a pottery shop. Ryoko smirked, knowing that with the clone this ticked off, he wasn't going to be using Ayeka's powers to their fullest, much to her relief.

(B-D)

It was as if they were living through a grade B action movie. They snuck around corners, knocked out several initiate guards, and managed to make their way to a large hanger that was most definitely the armory, with rows and rows of munitions, explosives, and tank shells. If you had played any of the _C&C_ games, you would know that the units never, ever ran out of ammo, and this is a very probable reason for that.

"Well, if this ain't the place we were lookin' for, I don't know what is."

"Indeed. Let us be done with this place quickly, so I can go back with my Ranma-sama."

"Now hold on a minute, lady!"

"Will you both keep quiet?" shushed Washu. "Are you trying to get us caught or what?" Both girls hung their heads for a moment. "Ok, let's get as much explosives as we can carry and get out of here."

"Unfortunately, that I cannot allow," echoed a quiet voice with a light Russian accent throughout the hanger. The three stayed quiet, hoping that the voice was talking to someone else. "I know you are there, ladies, next to the C4 explosives. You can come out now, for you have been discovered."

The three glanced at each other, then stood and faced the man standing on an overhead walkway. The man had a brown Soviet uniform with red trimmings and a medium goatee. What was strange about him, though, was the fact that he had several insulated wires coming out of his head just above the ears and went behind his head to places unknown. He stared at them for a moment, with his unblinking pale blue eyes.

"Ok, spill. Who are you and what are you doing here in this dimension," demanded Washu. She figured to find out as much as she could about how they got here while she had the chance. "You obviously aren't supposed to be here. How did you get here?"

"So, the lady knows about dimensional travel, but first, I shall introduce myself. I am Yuri, and soon, this and all other dimensions will be mine."

"Ok, that's all nice and dandy, but I want to know just how you got here."

"I believe you wouldn't understand, but it was really an accident how we got here. I'm sure you are unfamiliar with the Chronosphere, a time travel device. We had finally captured one of these and I had my scientists study it. While running some tests they had a miscalculation and instead of us going back in time, we appeared here instead. I then decided to take advantage of this new world and make my return with an even larger army."

"So that would explain why your base is so small," concluded Washu. "Since this wasn't meant to be an invasion, you had no resources at all to conquer this place. That's why you had your clones go and take over people so you could learn what this world was about and how to conquer it. This is starting to make sense now."

"I'm glad one of us knows what's going on here," mumbled Ukyou.

"Yes, I see you understand much, my lady. You shall make a fine addition to my army."

"I hate to tell you this, Yuri, but you're invasion ends now."

"Oh really? I think not, but for now, you will obey."

Yuri stared at the three ladies beneath him as they clutched they heads in agony, trying to fight his influence. That's when things went black.

(B-D)

Several passes and exchanges went by and they found that they were evenly matched. Despite him being the crown prince of the planet Jurai and the near-super human abilities it gave him, Kuno was much more skilled in the way of the sword, which to him was incredible. He had done battle with the most feared villains in the galaxy and fought off menace after menace, and he had finally met his match in the form of the seemingly normal fellow human with no Jurain blood whatsoever. Either this Kuno person was one of the most skilled swordsmen in this dimension, or he'd really been slacking off in his own training.

Kuno, on the other hand, was getting more and more furious at his inability to break the defenses of this unknown person. He was obviously more skilled swordsman, but no matter what he had tried, this boy would manage some kind of defense to save himself from his righteous fury. He searched his memories and found nothing about his foe. He was just a normal-looking boy that was with the others, but he had seen how he blocked his ally's hammer with that wooden sword, which was the main reason why he wasn't holding back on him. A wise decision on his part, because he would've been defeated a while ago if he had held back.

"You're not bad, Kuno. You're a lot better than I though you were."

"Do not try to flatter me with your words, for we both know who is the superior swordsman. As soon as I finish you off I'll be able to finally exact my revenge on that foul Saotome, which for some reason I have this intense hatred for."

"You don't even know why you hate him?"

"No, I do not. This mind is so deranged I dare only to control his emotions and actions, not his thoughts, but enough about that. It's time we finished this!"

And the battle was joined once again. Several yards to the southwest was another "battle," if one could call it that. It was mainly Ranma dodging everything Akane threw at him, whether it be hammer, rock, or other random object found in the forest. Basically it was just another sparring session. Ranma was just thanked God that she wasn't using that Near-Undodgable Hammer of Clobbering™.

"Stand still so I can kill you, you jerk!"

"Geez, Akane. Even when you're not in control, you still as slow as a slug."

"AAAHHHHGGGG!"

"Come on, you big gorilla, I know you can do better than that." Ranma simply hopped around, dodging everything she threw at him as he executed his master plan. 'This is perfect. If I make her mad enough, that clone'll overload for sure. There's no way he can handle that. Man, I'm good.'

(B-D)

There was blackness, nothing but blackness. This is not an unfamiliar scene, but this was the first time he had ever experienced something like this. When he could see again he had taken a knee where he once stood. He glanced at his new mind slaves, seeing them in a similar condition. That was strange. At any rate, he was the first to speak.

"And now, you obey."

"Like heck we will!" exclaimed Washu.

"Yeah, there's no way we're gonna bow down to you, no matter how many headaches you give us."

"Even if they are migraine in scope, you would have to do better than that to stop us," finished Kodachi.

Yuri stared at these women once again. They had resisted his mental control? How was such a thing possible? Wait, it was possible. These must be the most experienced of the force, thus accounts for their resistance. That was, however, the first time he received that kind of feedback, though.

"So, I see. You must have had special training to resist, or some kind of device?"

The ladies glanced at one another.

"I stand corrected, Ms. Washu," said Kodachi.

"Just call me Washu. Anyway, since he can't control us, let take this guy down, shall we?"

"Oh yeah, nobody gives me a migraine and gets away with it," replied Ukyou as she unsheathed her battle spatula.

"Do not think that mind control is the only weapon at my disposal."

"Yeah, right," answered Ukyou. "Your psychic powers are useless against us. What other weapon do you have?"

Yuri's eyes narrow as he answers not with words, but with the actions of pulling out a fully-automatic machine gun and spraying the general area of his enemies, who just happened to be standing next to his own ample supply of C4.

(B-D)

Wow, this was taking a lot longer than I thought. This chapter ran way long so I had to cut it in half. I had a feeling that you guys wouldn't want a 40+ page chapter...sheesh. Anyway let me answer a couple of reviews that I've gotten. I love these (hint hint).

Dreaming of Everything: As the official first fan of the JLA, let me thank you for your reviews. I'm glad to see that I'm doing a good job here. It's not easy keeping these guys in character, as the next dimension is going to prove to be very difficult. Just let me know when I'm starting to slip.

Emma Iveli: You're not suppossed to give that away! Yeah, like I'm really going to use the Scouts...although...hmm. Well, that would be just one of several series that I haven't seen, but I've seen them cross over with so much stuff. Zatch Bell and One Piece, eh? I may have to invest in one of those. I'm trying to keep the league to less then 15, and I've already hit almost half that already, but I'll seriously consider it.

e: I'm truely sorry that you thought my depiction of Jesus was insulting. As you may or moy not have noticed, I'm also a Christian, but let's be honest. God has to have a sense of humor, otherwise there wouldn't be any humor, would it? How Jesus appears is just how I see Him in today's world. Most people I've talked to saw Him in jeans, but that's besides the point. I hope you keep reading, as I think I redeem myself somewhere along the line. :)

gunman: Wow, that's a lot to think about. A ninja, eh? That's a point I can't believe I missed. Yeah, they sure could use one, but I'm really trying not to make anyone inferior to anybody else, thus the exclusion of the DBZ crew. But ninjas...hmm.

Fatboy: Ha, I was hoping someone would catch that before this chapter. I tried not to make it too hard. I also hope you like how I portreyed Yuri in this and the next chapters.

Ok, that's it for now, but I'll be back next month for the stunning conclusion of the JLA vs Team Yuri. Have a happy Thanksgiving, you all!


	7. JLA vs Team Yuri Player Defeated

_**JLA vs. Team Yuri – Player Defeated**_

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Something wasn't right. It wasn't supposed to be this hard. She had had no trouble whatsoever in the past of taking him down, but this time was different. This time he was stronger, faster, and deadlier than before. No tricks this time. Instead of the Fist of the White Swan, he used his Wings of Sauron technique against her, which is by far one of his most lethal attacks if it connects. She had managed to defeat that tech, but she was slightly bloodied after that particular exchange. She was also down to one bombori. Indeed, this was not the Mousse she grew up with that fawned over her daily and groveled whenever she made an insulting comment to him. This Mousse was serious, even more so than if he was fighting against her airen.

"Are you surprised, Shampoo?" That stopped her. "You weren't expecting this much of a fight from me, were you? Yeah, I know all about the pain and suffering you brought on my mind slave. At first I had a lot of difficulty getting him to attack you, but when I went back and saw what you did to him, it made me realize just how much of a perfect fit you would be with our reeducation centers back at home. The cruelty, the unashamed torture you inflicted on him. Truly the work of a master. All I had to do was shut down his good feelings for you and then I just sit back and enjoy the show. I can't wait to tell my fellow clones about this. As we bring this world to its knees, we also bring justice to those we conquer. Poetic justice in its purest form. Ah, yes. That look on your face brings happiness and joy to this man's heart. Do you understand? I'm not forcing him to do this to you, Shampoo. In fact, I'm the only thing keeping him from pressing his attack as I speak. He has wanted to do this to you for so long even I'm amazed that he hasn't cracked yet. Strike a nerve, did I? Good. Now I'm just going to sit back again and enjoy you finally getting was you've deserved for so long."

Shampoo had slowly gone was shock to anger to tears throughout the clones ramblings. At first she thought this to be a trick, some kind of clever rouse to take her off guard, but he attacked her with something she had no defense for…the truth. Sure, she didn't like him, and he did chase away all the boys from approaching her as they grew up, but she was overly harsh with him. Sure, he didn't get it, but she had to put on a good show for everybody. She was, of course, in contention to become a matriarch one day, and Mousse was a convenient scapegoat for her to display her strengths. Not once did she ever think how this was going to affect him until now. She never would've guessed that he would actually suppress all of this anger and hatred as he continuously proclaimed his love for her. If he had acted a little like this Mousse, she would've been attracted to him in a heartbeat, but a potential matriarch couldn't have a sniveling idiot for a husband. Now she had to reap what she had sowed, and it was going to be painful.

Several meters away was the other fight. Guy was pushing himself like never before to survive. Yes, he had thought that he had reached that next level the Ryoga showed him back home, but without the confusion of the rules of his form of combat and the fatal attack option switched to "on," he was having to remain on defense for the vast majority of the fight. Yeah, he still hit like a Mack truck, and he discovered just how light that stupidly heavy umbrella was the hard way, but he was doing some actual damage to him this time. Finally all that training was bearing fruit, but what good is that going to be if he gets killed in a few moments. Sure, Guy was just a fraction slower than Ryoga was now, but his defense was still more than he could conquer. There was a pause in the fight as Mousse-slave ranted about what Shampoo had done to him. They both glanced at each other with pained expressions on their faces. Yeah, that was pretty bad. Ah ha! Now that he wasn't dodging for his life Guy had a bright idea. Shampoo was losing badly to Mousse and he wasn't faring that well against Ryoga. Wouldn't it make sense if they switched opponents? This way Shampoo could hold off the monster while he took out the guy who didn't hate him to the core. He jumped so that he was back to back with Shampoo just as her guard was about to lower.

"Shampoo, we gotta switch up."

"What?" she answered, her mind thankful to be on something else.

"We're both gonna lose if we keep this up. You think you can take Ryoga?"

"Shampoo don't know."

"I think you'll stand a better chance against him than someone who has a vendetta against you."

Shampoo winced at Guy's comment, but nodded anyway. She hated to admit it, but she couldn't beat Mousse while they were like this. Strategically, this was for the best. Yeah, that's it. Strategy. That's about when they were all distracted by the huge explosion back where they left the aliens.

(B-D)

They were pinned down. For some reason Washu wanted to yell that, but her voice would've only been drowned out by the gunfire that had surrounded them. She knew some things about earthbound weaponry, but she knew for a fact that he had to run out of ammo sooner or later. So far, he had to have fired off at least a thousand rounds without reloading or overheating. Ukyou and Kodachi had jumped to different areas of the floor to seek cover, so she couldn't even see them, never mind communicate. That when she saw something weird happen, other then the fact that she was apparently living out a video game. She saw a small spatula fly through the air like a throwing star and hit Yuri's hand, causing him to drop his weapon. He would've recovered quickly if that spatula weren't followed up with a flying gymnastics club upside the head. That knocked Yuri around senseless. With this opening, the three converged on him in three blinks of an eye.

"Wha…what is this?"

Kodachi stood over the prone Yuri with a hoop to his neck.

"This is one of my razor hoops. If you move you'll sever your jugular vein, and we both know what would happen if you did that."

Yuri slowly raised his hand to feel the edge of the hoop, and was startled to find that it was indeed very sharp. He wondered for a moment how she could hold it with such a grip without cutting herself, but that though was pushed aside to focus on his current situation.

"It seems like you're defeated, Yuri," stated Washu.

"Perhaps, but as long as I live, I still have ways to defeat you."

"Oh yeah," taunted Ukyou, "you and what army?"

Yuri's eyes widened for a moment as the lights flickered. Within seconds fifteen initiate soldiers rushed in and surrounded them. If we had had an overhead view of the base, we would've seen Yuri's three power plants empty and all units rush the construction yard. Ukyou and Washu glanced around them in a ready stance as Kodachi stood her ground over the prone Yuri.

"You just had to ask, didn't you?" quipped Washu.

"Hey, how was I supposed to know he had these guys waiting for us?"

"Maybe because Guy said that this was a WAR STRATEGY GAME with ARMIES?"

"Ok, I screwed up, my bad."

"So, what will you do now, ladies? Even if you kill this form, I shall be reborn and my troops will destroy you where you stand. Surrender, and I will make sure that you serve me will."

"Wow, what a choice," deadpanned Ukyou.

"I would rather die than be your slave, monster. There is only one man I would give myself to in such a way…"

"HEY!"

"Ladies! Ladies! Calm down, we're not done, yet."

The girls and Yuri glanced at Washu as she stood tall with her arms crossed triumphantly.

"They got us outnumbered five-to-one and surrounded and you're saying that we got this?"

"I've seen one miracle tonight, but I don't see how anything can save us this time."

"Heh, I do hate to do this, as I wanted to use his explosives to blow stuff up, but it looks like we'll have to go to Plan 'B.'"

"Plan B?" exclaimed the three.

Washu posed as she thrust her fist in the air.

"Do it, Ryo-Ohki!"

"YOU MEAN THAT CAT THING IS PLAN B?" yelled the girls.

(B-D)

They were still battling after all this time, but considering that they're both abnormally powerful aliens, this was to be expected. Ryoko's eyes widen when she realized something.

"Whoa, so she did go there."

Ayeka was too angry to respond, seeing as how she managed to completely lose it during the fight. Ryoko feinted left, then swung around behind her and grabbed her into a full-nelson move. Ayeka was completely immobilized.

"Let go of me, you vile creature, so I can &#$ing kill you!"

"Whoa, princess, I didn't see that coming. Just hold on for a few seconds. This'll be over shortly."

"YEEAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHGGGGG!" as she started kicking and screaming.

'Man, I hope it'll only take a few seconds. I forgot how strong she could get.'

(B-D)

"How dare you disarm the almighty enforcer of Master Yuri? You shall surely burn in hell for this!"

"Geez, Kuno, we disarmed each other by a freak shot. No need to get all uptight about it. These things happen."

"Not to me. It is time to finish you!" yells Kuno as he pulls out another bokken, surprising Tenchi, as he had no other bokken.

Meanwhile, Ranma continues to dodge and taunt Akane out of that clone's mind control, with predictable results…she's still under their control and she's getting madder and madder. Suddenly she stopped, causing Ranma to pause.

"Geez, is it any wonder why she gets mad at you so much," said Akane.

"Huh?" Ranma responds intelligently. "Why are you talking like that?"

"This is her master speaking, fool. When you volunteered to fight me she was ecstatic, you know, thinking that you'd save her like always, but good grief you're stupid."

"What're you talkin' about?"

"What? Did you think you could break my control of her by ticking her off? HA! That's a laugh. You've only fueled her attacks by doing that. Heck, for the past ten minutes I haven't even been controlling her, it was just her going at you."

"What?"

"Yeah. At first I thought you were luring me into a false sense of security, but then I realized what you were really doing. Heh heh heh…it took me those ten minutes to finally stop laughing long enough for me to stop her for a moment. You people are crazy, and if this is how you treat someone who loves you, than you're even more messed up than she thought you were."

"What!" yelled the indignant Ranma. He was so confused and stricken by this discovery of love and the utter failure of his master plan that he was caught completely flatfooted by the right cross Akane threw at him. Ranma spun to the ground as cobwebs clogged his racing mind. It wasn't until Akane had pinned him to the ground and started pummeling him in the face that his mind finally came back to the fight, which now started to look like a beating.

(B-D)

"NOW!"

"RIGHT!"

Mousse and Ryoga moved at the exact moment and crossed over Shampoo and Guy, effectively switching opponents again. They had done this several times, catching them off guard each time. It seemed like every time they had the advantage, they would switch up again. Guy once again faced Ryoga and drooped his arms for a moment. 'Why go to the next level when you can go light years beyond, huh?' thought Guy as he repeatedly felt the full wrath of Ryoga and Mousse. Shampoo wasn't fairing much better, as she was on the receiving end of a choke-out by Mousse followed by a serious clubbing by Ryoga. She finally managed to disarm Ryoga, but at the cost of her last bonbori. This last switch-up caught both Guy and Shampoo in the air in mid-attack. Needless to say, their targets were no longer there, but Ryoga had gotten behind Guy locked him in a bear hug from behind. Shampoo knocked him off, but with her back turned toward Mousse, he caught her by the neck with his chain, choking her out again.

Guy tried to return the favor, but was grabbed by the wrist by Ryoga and hammer-thrown several yards away. When he recovered he saw the worst-case scenario happen. As he got up he saw the last of the fight Shampoo had drain out of her as Mousse choked her with his chains.

"You monster! Even though you hated her, you didn't have to kill her!"

"Who says she's dead?" said Mousse. "Now that I've taken her out of the fight, we can take you down with no problem, and then I'll start the next level of my 'beloved' Shampoo's punishment."

"Dude, that ain't right."

"No more right than what she did to me."

"He's got a point."

"No way. There's no justification for that!"

"Ok, maybe that is going a bit far, but you gotta admit, it'll be fun, wouldn't it?"

"Dude, you're sick in the head…but that's not really you talking, though, is it? Come on, man, don't you see what they're making you do?"

Ryoga and Mousse glanced at each other.

"Go on, keep talking," taunted Ryoga. "We love hearing our slaves' friends try to talk them out of our control."

"Heh, that always gives me a good laugh."

"Aww crud," was all Guy could say as his rest was now over.

Mousse and Ryoga leapt in attack, knowing that Guy wouldn't hold out against them both for a minute, that is, until Guy started to glow.

"I really didn't want to do this, but…OLD SCHOOL FIGHTING GAMER'S STYLE CHANGE! CHARACTER SELECT, M. BISON!"

"What the?" they yelled.

"Heh, heh. PSYCHO CRUSHER!"

(B-D)

A bright pillar of red light nearly blinded everyone in the room as Washu, Ukyou, and Kodachi seemed to disintegrate before their eyes. Yuri was the first to recover as he shouted the order to fire, but it was already too late. They were gone. Yuri stood and inspected the area as the initiates simply stood there.

"What happened to them?" asked Yuri as he stared at the ground that his opponents had so recently occupied. His head shot up to the new opening in his construction yard to see something he had never seen before.

(B-D)

"Where are we?" asked Kodachi as she and Ukyou absorbed their surroundings.

"And what's with all the floating crystal things?"

"Myeh!"

"No way!"

"Yep. Ladies, welcome to Ryo-Ohki. Now be a good girl and rain terror and destruction on the base down there, won't you?"

"This is that cat thing?" asked Ukyou.

Washu simply answered with a smile as the fireworks started below.

(B-D)

How could this have happened? There was no possible way that something that big and powerful could've snuck into his perimeter like that. Now it was raining laser fire all across his base. He managed to get out of the construction yard before it exploded. As he regained his feet he saw building after building succumb to this strange spiked spacecraft above him. For the first time in decades, fear consumed him. He acted solely on instinct, and that instinct told him to sell whatever buildings were left so he could build a new mobile construction vehicle so he can start over. With but a mental command he sold them, replenishing his money reserves, more then enough to build a new MCV and a few buildings. Only then did he realize his mistake. He was already established, and he hadn't built his weapons factory yet that could build the MCV. He had just sold all of his buildings, which meant only one thing. He smacked himself on the forehead before flying several feet from a nearby explosion. As he landed he knew he was defeated, and then there was nothing.

(B-D)

"Wow, that was surprisingly quick," quipped Washu as Ryo-Ohki stopped firing about ten seconds after every building seemed to just fold up and sink into the ground. Washu did a quick check to see if they had burrowed underground, but found nothing. "Hmm, looks like our job here is done."

(B-D)

She kept a grip on her for as long as she could, but Ayeka finally fought free and they faced each other once again. She screamed in attack again, but paused in mid-stride, tripping her up. Ryoko flew and caught her before she hit the ground.

"Uuhhgg, what happened to me?"

"You ok, Ayeka?"

"Ryoko? Were we just fighting?"

"Um, yeah. Do you remember anything?"

"Yes…I remember everything…"

(B-D)

"And now is the time to finally finish this battle between you and the great enforcer of…of…whoa…" Kuno stumbled for a moment before catching himself.

"Hey, you ok?"

"Just a little dizzy, but yes, I am fine. My apologies for my behavior, as I would not attack a stranger on sight like that."

"Don't worry about it, I was just here to distract you, anyway."

"Indeed. Where is my beloved Akane?"

"Huh? I thought she was Ranma's fiancée."

They both looked towards Ranma and Akane seeing that they were still fighting. Actually, Akane was still beating the life out of Ranma. She did pause for a moment as the control finally broke, but then she kept pummeling him.

"RANMA NO BAKA! RANMA NO BAKA! RANMA NO BAKA! RANMA NO BAKA! RANMA NO BAKA! RANMA NO BAKA! RANMA NO BAKA! RANMA NO BAKA! RANMA NO BAKA! RANMA NO BAKA!"

"Ranma! I thought she would've been freed by that!"

"No need to worry, sir, for they are always like this."

"Oh…that's still a nasty beating, though."

"Believe me, I know."

(B-D)

Guy could only watch in horror as his opponents dodged his last attempt at offense. He had forgotten that he was in a 3D environment for just a moment, and go figure, they sidestepped his attack. Now with his desperation attack a failure, they leapt to counter-attack. He put up a meager block, knowing that the fight was over. He expected punches and kicks, but instead all he got was a couple of tangled people colliding with him in an unorganized mess, knocking all the wind out of him. After some seconds passed, Mousse and Ryoga got up and tried to help Guy up.

"I'm so sorry," apologized Mousse. "I couldn't stop myself from…"

"It's ok…ouch. I know you were…ack…not in control…geez it hurts."

"Are you going to be ok, buddy?" asked Ryoga. "I really didn't want to do that."

"I'll be fine…_wheeze_…just somebody check on Shampoo…"

Mousse's face froze in horrid shock when he remembered what he did to her. He rushed over to Shampoo, leaving Guy completely unbalanced, causing him and Ryoga to fall over. She was still unconscious, but at least she was breathing.

(B-D)

They had made it back to the Tendo Dojo, but not without some difficulty. Washu could only teleport everyone so far before they had to walk the rest of the way. She didn't want to show these people too much. Ryoga was helping Guy walk, Mousse carried Shampoo, and Ryoko carried the battered form of Ranma with Ukyou and Kodachi flanking him, keeping Akane a respectable distance from him and glancing at the cabbit on Ayeka's shoulder. Akane was just staring off to the side in unusually deep thought with Tenchi and Washu walking ahead of her. When they finally reached the dojo, Akane was treated to a bear hug from her father while Cologne directed the others to place the "wounded" in the bedding that she was prepared for them in the training hall. Her eye twitched at Mousse carrying Shampoo, but let it rest for the moment. As everyone was now settled in the dojo, mostly thanks to Kasumi's cooking, Cologne sat in a corner, pondering what was to happen next. Sometimes she really hated prophecies, but this one had to be done. She called Washu to the side to speak with her.

"How can I help you?"

"I have a strong feeling that you are the group that was prophesied to come shortly after my tribe was born, but to make sure, I must know what your group is called."

Washu thought for a moment. She had been going through some names since they arrived at the dojo, but none of them seemed to fit. Just then the inevitable idea popped up.

"I guess you can call us the Justice League of Animé."

Cologne grimaced a little. "And why would you name yourselves that?"

"I guess it fits what we are. We're a league of heroes from across the Animé cluster bringing justice where ever we go, or something like that."

"Hmm, interesting. That settles it, then. Please have everyone meet here in the dojo in thirty minutes. I have a phone call to make."

"No problem," she responded cheerfully as the two really old people parted ways.

(B-D)

Nabiki had come by the dojo to see how everyone was doing. She knew that there would be a few bruises after a major fight, but this was far more than she expected. That black guy was heavily bandaged and Ranma was a pummeled mess. Mousse sat next to a badly beaten and still unconscious Shampoo and Kodachi tending to a few cuts that Kuno had gotten. The short haired boy, Tenshu or something like that, already had a bunch of bandages on him from many cuts and bruises. Boy, did she have to hear this story. She turned and walked back to the kitchen for a glass of water, and caught something in the corner of her eye and made her blood freeze. She spun around and approached the old matriarch. Normally she wasn't too fazed by her, but she was on their phone. Mousse and Shampoo were in the training hall, so who could she be calling? Nabiki approached her and was about to speak when Cologne told the other party to hold on and faced her.

"Do not worry, child. I'm calling collect."

A huge sigh a relief gripped her as her battle aura faded. She then continued to get her some water.

(B-D)

He knew what had happened. He knew why it happened. He just couldn't believe that he had done it, and quiet mercilessly at that. He didn't know he had that in him, so long had he been denying it, but it was there. The anger and hatred was slowly fading, but he knew that it would never die. Yeah, he still loved her, but that clone did more to him than he realized. In order to bring out that hatred for her, that clone buried his pining love for her in its place. Now that he had some time to recover, he was once again emotionally stable…relatively speaking. His hate was now slight bitterness, and his puppy love was now more of a grudging respect and friendship love. Now that he thought about it, this was probably for the best…although he hadn't thought about the consequences of their battle yet.

She still lay there, unmoving yet breathing steadily. Shampoo had awaken over an hour ago, but she kept playing dead until she could get her mind right again. The realization of the night was only punctuated by her defeat at the hands of this "weak man" she thought she knew all her life. She wanted to know if he would still hate her even after he was back in his right mind, but to her surprise he stayed by her side. He was different, though. He wasn't whining about what had happened nor gloating of his victory like the old Mousse would have. This new Mousse was more solemn and contemplative. Only Ryoga and Guy even knew what happened, but no one had said a word as to how she was defeated. Thus she lay there, thinking things through, figuring things out, and meditating on the possibilities.

(B-D)

Everyone had gathered into the training hall and awaited Cologne. She finally showed and took a deep breath before starting.

"A long time ago, shortly after our branch of the Amazons was formed over 3000 years ago, we were visited by a divine being. At first we thought it to be a demon, but after a long battle, the being was victorious. Our warriors and spell casters lay battered and helpless before it, but instead of slaying them, he healed them. Only then did they realize that it was a benevolent messenger sent to them. He told them to hold this prophecy close to their hearts, for it was sent to them directly from Kami-sama Himself. He said that a league of heroes from another dimension shall arrive and that we should assist them with everything we have to save our world. He also told us that only a few warriors from each world they visit would go with them and the rest must stay to be the defenders of the realm, for other forces will come and only the defenders can hold them at bay. Afterwards we wrote down the prophesy on a piece of dragon's hide, to ensure that we would never forget. Of course, our people didn't know what he was talking about at first, thus after some time all but the matriarchs had forgotten about this, but now it has finally been fulfilled. So tell us, Washu. How can we humble Amazons help you in your quest to save our world and apparently many others as well?"

Everyone in the room sat silent for a while, trying to absorb this new information.

"Did you just make this all up?" asked the now functional Ranma.

"I assure you, son-in-law, I am quiet serious. Of all the legends that we have, this is by far the most sacred of our tribe. How often is it that we are visited by an angel?"

"Now I understand our conversation from earlier," said Washu. "I believe that you have the final two clues as to who the other two warriors are because the two clues I have left are 'Amazon prophesy' and 'The rest of it.' Does that make any sense?"

"'The rest of it?' That is all I know of this prophecy unless…"

"Excuse me," interrupted Kasumi as she poked her head through the door, "but Cologne, you have an important phone call. She says she's your master…"

"Oh my," said Cologne, stealing Kasumi's line. "She hasn't been heard from in decades."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" exclaimed Ranma. "You mean to tell me that your master, who's got to be older than you, is still alive?"

Cologne's face twitched. "Apparently so, son-in-law. Wait here. I feel that her calling now, and here of all places, is not a coincidence."

Cologne quickly hopped out of the room, leaving everyone to their own devices.

"Well, that was weird, even for us," said a tired Ryoga.

"No kidding," replied Guy weakly. "I should've known that there'd be prophesies and stuff involved."

"How so?"

"It's in video games all the time."

"It appears someone needs to start living in the real world," scoffed Kuno.

"Hah, talk about the pot calling the kettle black!" laughed out Ranma, causing most of the room to join him. Only the Kunos and the JLA didn't get it.

"What do you mean by that, Saotome?"

"Ha! You don't even have a clue, Kuno."

"That's enough, son-in-law." Everyone jumped at her voice, not expecting Cologne to be back so soon.

"So what'd the older ghoul say?"

"She has fulfilled her purpose and has left this mortal realm."

"Oh…sorry."

"It is ok. I am glad that I was able to speak to her one last time before she joined our ancestors, but she did leave me with the other part of the prophecy."

"Wow, really?" exclaimed Tenchi.

"Indeed. It appears that there were two parts to the prophecy. One was what I had already told you. The other part were but two phrases that, up until now, made absolutely no sense whatsoever. When she told me these phrases, however, I knew exactly who she was talking about."

"Well no need to keep us in suspense," said Washu, "spill it already."

"The first phrase is 'the gifted aquatransexual.'"

Most eyes quickly shot at Ranma as he realized what was going on.

"Wait a minute, what're ya'll lookin' at me, for. We don't even know what that means."

"It roughly means being either gender with water," explained Washu. "Considering your curse, as well as your gift in the martial arts, my guess is you're coming with us."

"Aww, man!" Ranma cried in defeat.

"Should've known he was going," said Ryoga, 'but then again, with Ranma gone, I'll finally get a chance to tell Akane how I feel…hmm…'

Ryoko glanced at Ukyou sitting next to her, wondering why she was blinding her with that super wide smile of hers.

"So what's the other clue," asked Mousse.

"This surprised me the most. The second phrase is 'The Blue Thunder.'"

All eyes eventually locked on Kuno as he stood up proudly.

"HA! Even the gods themselves know how mighty is the sword of Tatewaki Kuno, the Blue Thunder of Furinkan High. Soon, evil everywhere shall feel my might."

Ranma and Ukyou glanced at each other, realizing the same thing. They were going to be spending a lot time with Kuno…without any escape whatsoever. They reacted the only way they knew how.

"NNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

(B-D)

Grumbling was the only thing heard in his room over his father's snoring as he packed to his next journey. Sure, he was used to just up and leaving, but he really didn't want to this time. For the longest time, he had come to know this place as home, with people that he cared for. Now he was going to some kind of war or something in another dimension, a concept that he barely grasped himself. He didn't know what to think, so he changed gears instead. He may finally able to get rid of one of his fiancées tonight, and at first he was happy, but now he wasn't feeling all that great anymore.

* * *

"Son-in-law, I need to speak with you for a moment." 

"What is it now? My head's still spinning from finding out that I have to go tomorrow…"

"Which is why I need to resolve this issue now, before you leave. Come with me."

Ranma followed Cologne to where Mousse and Shampoo were. This was the first time he noticed that Shampoo was unconscious.

"Whoa, what happened to her?"

"That is what I would like to know, as well. Mousse, I believe you have some explaining to do."

"Um…well…I'm sorry, matriarch. I wasn't even in control when it happened…"

"As I feared. You finally defeated her, didn't you?"

Mousse's head hung in defeat. "Yes."

"Geez, Mousse, I thought you'd be happier than this. Doesn't this mean that you get to marry her now or somethin'?"

"I guess."

Cologne arched an eyebrow as she observed his behavior. This was definitely a different Mousse than the one she had known all his life.

"And why this sudden change? Why are you so hesitant to lay your claim on my granddaughter?"

"I knew you were going to ask that. When I was taken over by that Yuri clone and I saw Shampoo below me as I hid in the trees in ambush, it noticed that I had so much resistance to hurting her that it had to do something. I couldn't stop him from going through all my memories and reliving all the torment she put on me throughout my life. He found my hatred for her, all bottled up deep in my soul, and he released it all. Then, just to be sure, he buried my love for her in the same spot that my hatred was, so I wouldn't hesitate at all. I remember everything, and I was merciless…and I hated every second of it."

"Man, now I see why you're more depressed than Ryoga. So what are you going to do, now?"

"That's up to Cologne to decide."

"I see. So what are your feelings toward Shampoo, now?"

"I still love her…but there is a lot of bitterness in there. I don't know how to explain it, but it still hurts. I don't hate her like I did before, but I know I'm not going to be the same as I was before."

"Hmm, interesting."

"So what's gonna happen? Is she still my fiancée or does she go to Mousse, now?"

"That all depends on my daughter. Although I would rather that she choose you, it is ultimately her decision, and considering the changes Mousse has gone through, I wouldn't mind either way." This surprised both boys, as she all but gave her blessings to each of them. They glanced at each other in confusion for a few moments. "So, what say you, great-granddaughter? You've had plenty of time to think about this, so you can stop playing dead."

The boys jumped when Shampoo simply opened her eyes and tried to sit up. They helped her up into a sitting position while she got adjusted to the light.

"Shampoo never could fool great-grandmother."

"You're still a few hundred years from that. So now that you know what Mousse thinks, what have you to say about this?"

"Shampoo only want know one thing from Ranma…How Ranma feel about Shampoo? Do you hate, like, love Shampoo?"

"Ack!" was Ranma's first response. "Well, ok, we friends, I guess, I mean, when you're not chasing me and drugging me and stuff, but, um…I guess we're cool."

Cologne just buried her face in her hands. Ranma was one of the most gifted students of the arts that she had ever encountered, but he had to be weak in something to balance that. Why? Why did it have to be with expressing his feelings?

"So you no want marry Shampoo?"

"Not now…I mean, I just don't want to get married so soon. Not for a while, anyway…"

"Shampoo understand," she said downcast. "Shampoo no have to make choice now, do I?"

Cologne thought for a moment before answering.

"Normally yes, you would, but considering the circumstances, I can at least give you the night to decide. Ranma, you leave in the morning, so Shampoo will give you her answer then. In the meantime, we all need some rest and Ranma has some packing to do. Mousse, you will return to the café with me. Shampoo, you rest here for tonight."

* * *

"So now what am I supposed to do? I want her to pick Mousse, but for some reason I don't. Arrghh, forget it. I'll be better off without her…right?" 

_**knock knock**_

"Come in." The door hesitated for a moment before opening to reveal the last person Ranma wanted to face tonight. "A…Akane?"

"Can I…come in?" she asked meekly.

Ranma could only motion her to come in as he tried to figure out what was going on. After several minutes of silence he finally spoke up.

"Um, ok, look. If this is about what I did earlier tonight…"

"Don't worry about it," she replied as she continued staring at the floor. "I'm over that."

"Um…ok." He glances about to check his surroundings. The panda's still asleep and nobody seemed to be at the door. He knew a hammer was about to fall somewhere. "So, um…"

"Ranma?"

"Um…yeah?"

"Do you hate me?"

_**POW!**_

"Why are you asking me that?" he asked as he separated himself from the floor.

"You're about to go to some other world to save the universe. I don't know if I'll ever see you again…_sob._"

"I'll be fine, Akane. Nothing can take me out."

"But still…I…I want you…to come back."

"You what?"

"I remember everything that happened tonight, Ranma. The base, fighting you, your taunting, that idiot clone telling you about my true feelings…everything. I just…wanted to know that you don't hate me…"

"Akane…geez. How uncute can ya' get?" Akane twitched. "I mean, how could you possibly think I could hate you for caring about me? There's no need to get all gushy about it. I'll be fine, and I'll be back for you in no time." Akane started to shake visibly. "Yo, Akane…you ok?"

She wiped a tear from her eyes.

"Thank you, Ranma. You've been a pain in the butt, but I'm glad that you've always been there for me…no matter how stupid you can be sometimes."

With that Akane rose and left the room, leaving Ranma with even more conflicting thoughts than before. After a few more minutes, he finally continued to pack again, grumbling to himself with a small smile.

"Great, I'm finally about to get rid of one fiancée just to find out that another really does love me. Why me?"

(B-D)

Morning finally came to Nerima like always, but today will be the first time in a long time that it sees an event like this. Everyone was waiting for the Kunos to show so they could go on.

"You know, I'm surprised I haven't seen the old troll hanging around here, what with these new girls in town and all," remarked Ranma.

"Good riddance if you ask me," said Ukyou. "If he came along this trip we'd fail for sure."

"Did you guys say something about a troll?" asked Ryoko as she walked up.

"Yeah, did you catch one?"

"I think so. Mom had her defense system up last night in the dojo and caught this little thing." She held up a burning chunk of charred something with big eyes. "Recognize this?"

"I wish I didn't. That's Happosai, grandmaster of my school and the world's greatest pervert."

"Heh, I figured he was a pervert, but a grandmaster?"

"Just put him in a box so we can ship him to South Africa or something."

"How about I just throw him. It'll cost less."

"How far can you…" started Ukyou when Ryoko pitched Happosai over the horizon. "Wow, that's impressive," as Happosai went **_ding!_**

"Thanks."

"But when I heard that my prized disciple was going away to a war, I had to check on it myself," said a voice just below Ryoko's neck, "but if you're going with these lovely ladies, you gotta take me with you!"

"GET OFF OF ME, YOU JERK!" as Ryoko tried to grab him off, but he kept dodging to other supple parts of her body, angering her more.

"Oh Happy!" cooed Ranma-chan as she revealed some cleavage.

"Hacha! Come're, baby!"

**_CLANG!_**

The battle spatula of doom flattened him in mid-air. Much three-way stomping ensued.

"Geez, he was dead just a minute ago!"

"That's Happosai for you," said Ranma-chan.

Everybody else finally arrived in the back yard.

"Here you go, Ranma," said Kasumi as she handed her a kettle.

"Thanks, Kasumi," she said, pouring the water over herself.

"I'm not sure I'll ever get used to that," said Tenchi.

"If what we talked about earlier is true, Ranma's curse'll be the most normal thing we encounter," said Guy.

"Wow, you sure healed up quick," said Ukyou.

"Yeah, that surprised me, too. I have a theory about that, but I need to do more research on that, first."

"Ok…so Washu, right? Can't we just leave now before the Kunos show up?"

"Sorry, Ranma, but the portal won't open unless we have everybody that's supposed to go."

"This journey shall be a success, for the Blue Thunder has finally arrived."

"Great," deadpanned Ukyou, "let the misery begin."

"I suggest you say your goodbyes now, folks. I have no idea when we're coming back."

Ranma and Ukyou made their rounds to each member of their family. Kuno simply lay there, being hammered preemptively by Akane. When Ranma reached Akane, she gave him a hug, earning glares from both Ukyou and Kodachi, but their moment was to come. He whispered something in her ear that caused her to cry a little, but she still stood strong. He came to Kodachi and hesitantly gave her a hug goodbye. He then turned to see the Amazons standing several feet from them. He saw Shampoo and Mousse holding hands, and approached them. He gave Shampoo a hug and Mousse a strong handshake as well as a warning to take care of her. He respectfully bowed to Cologne and thanked her for everything. She, in turn, gave him a small duffle bag of scrolls and potions to help him. He wondered where Ryoga was for a moment, but figured that he got lost again. Oh well. He turned to join the others when Happosai stopped him, surprising everyone. They stared each other down for a moment before Happosai nodded and stepped aside, motioning Ranma to continue. Ranma knew he wouldn't say it, but Happosai was very proud of him. He finally reached the group and nodded his readiness.

"Ok, let's get going," said Washu as she pressed a button on her watch and a door appeared.

"Just put your stuff in here. We can access it just about wherever we go. Kind of like a portable storage room."

"Ok," they replied as the put their bags in. Washu pressed another button on her watch. A large, circular portal swirling with a psychedelic mix of blue and white appeared, with the occasional flash of lightning. Never mind the gentle 20mph breeze.

"Um, is that lightning safe?" asked Ranma, not expecting to be drowned out by the loud rumble emitted by the portal.

"Alright," yelled Washu, again not hearing the comment about the lightning, "let's go!"

"All you gotta do is walk in," yelled Guy. "It'll only take a moment to go through."

"Yeah, right!" exclaimed Ranma.

They all entered the portal together. Happosai struggled futilely as his perverted instincts took over.

"I can't take it anymore. I'm coming, my pretty ladies!"

"Master, no!" Soun and Genma yelled excitedly, hoping something dreadful to happen to him.

**_KAAAZZZZZ!_**

Sure enough, something dreadful did happen. A powerful bolt of lightning stuck Happosai down, leaving the now really unconscious grandmaster smoldering on the ground.

"Impressive defense system, eh Kasumi?"

"Yes, Nabiki, very effective."

And then the portal was gone, and all was quiet once again.

(B-D)

_1 minute earlier…_

"Now where am I?" Ryoga had wanted to bid farewell to his rival and friend, not to mention be the shoulder for Akane to cry on until she saw him as the one that she was truly meant for. Looking around as he walked forward, he didn't notice the back of the swirling vortex streaming with lightning before him. How was he supposed to know that the back of an interdimensional portal was quiet and peaceful? "Huh?" Of course, only now did he notice the portal as he stepped through the back just after the others went through the front. And then the portal was no more, and no one would here from Ryoga Habiki for quite some time.

(B-D)

Their eyes strained as they oriented themselves amidst the swirling blue and white. Kuno's face remained stoic and still while Ranma started to do a kata, thinking that he looked cool doing so with these cool color scheme, like he was dancing at a club or something. Ukyou was watching Ryoko and Guy dancing it up when suddenly the color scheme pulsed red and black for a moment, causing everybody to flinch.

**_Pop!_**

"What the?" said Ukyou.

"Was that…" started Ranma.

"A 'pop?' Yeah, that surprised me the first time, too," responded Guy, "but what was up with the red pulse?"

"I don't know," answered Washu. "That's the first time we've seen that. We seem fine, though"

"Well, at any rate, where are we now?" asked Ayeka.

"Apparently on top of a small building," said Tenchi. "Um, is he ok?"

Everybody looked at Kuno, who was still in the exact pose as before. Ranma waved his hand in front of his face.

"Sheesh, out like a light. Yo! Kuno!" he yelled in his ear, startling him back into consciousness.

"How dare you do that, Saotome! What have I done to you to warrant such actions?"

"Where to begin…" started Ranma before he was interrupted.

**_BOOM! Rumble! Rumble!_**

"Whoa, what's going on?" asked Tenchi.

"Hey, guys?" called Ukyou as she surveyed the scene below. "You're really not going to believe this."

Everyone came to the edge and saw a battlefield below. Rubble everywhere, innocent bystanders running away, various types of monsters everything typical of a major battle except…

"What's the deal with all those magical girls?" asked Guy.

"Forget that," said Ranma. "Why the heck are they wearing sailor skirts in battle?"

(B-D)

Finally, an update, and probably my biggest one yet…at least for this story. As you may have noticed, this story will be on the move once again, this time, and I do hate to say this, but this time to the Sailor Moon section. Why? Well, when you see who they're up against this time, I think you'll like this. And what do you get when you cross an eternally lost boy with the rear end of an interdimensional portal? You'll find out soon enough. ;-)

So tell me, was this chappy too long, or just right? I'd like to know so I can figure out how to break up these chapters. I don't want to overload anybody, here. Anyway, I'll be back next month with an update for you. After the scouts I'm planning on going old school Animé, but I'm still open to suggestions on who else should join the JLA. Oh yeah, and before I forget…

Ranma-saotome-cursed-fighter: I'm glad you're enjoying this. Thanks to your concern, I'm going to put in the summery which chapter the section character comes in, so people will at least expect some buildup to familiar ground. I hope you continue to enjoy this.

Merry Christmas to all, and Happy Holidays to everybody else:)


	8. Mission from Mars

_** Disclaimer - **_I don't own anything from Tenchi, Ranma, Sailor Moon, Command & Conquer, or other stuff that would ruin some of the plot, but just so you know, I don't own those, either. I do own, Guy, though, so at least I have something...and chicken. :)

_**Mission from Mars**_

_**

* * *

**_

She sat there, deep in concentration. She had to. Last time she lost her concentration during this ritual, she was almost burned. That does make sense when you think about it, considering that she's performing a fire reading ritual just two feet from a blazing fire. Losing one's concentration causes sleep, and there're only so many directions you can fall when you fall asleep, and one of them is very, very hot. She began her hand seals as she started chanting the incantations required for the ritual. This was an ability that had been passed down for generations of Shinto priests and priestesses, but she was a special case. She had a natural affinity toward fire. Her grandfather realized when she was three, but there are reasons for this. She is not your normal high school girl. She is a Shinto priestess-in-training. She is also one of the Sailor Scouts, Sailor Mars to some, the fire menace to others. To her friends, she is simply known as Rei.

'There we go,' she thought as her meditative state finally reached its pinnacle. Usagi had been having some strange dreams lately, and the one time she ran into Setsuna she seemed agitated as well, even more so than usual. With this in mind, she began her fire reading. As she looked around, she saw the normal flames surrounding her. She was safe, though, as they did not produce heat. There was, however, a strange figure walking through the flames. This was different. Normally she would see various cryptic scenes playing in confusing intervals coming at her from disorienting directions, but this figure was walking toward her in a straight line. She glanced about to see if there was anything else, but it was just her, the flames, and the figure…hold on. She could see herself? That's not good. She's not supposed to see herself during a reading unless she was in the actual scene. Not only that, but she wasn't in her Scout uniform. If this thing walking toward her was evil…

"Peace be upon you, child," said the deeply bass voice of the figure. "I come to you with a message."

"Who are you?"

"I am a messenger from Kami-sama."

"Kami-sama? No way…"

"Trust your instincts trained and honed to you through your training and you will know the truth."

Rei studied the figure for a moment. It was still a silhouette hidden by the flames, but she felt no hostile intensions at all. In fact, she felt massive waves of peace and tranquility.

"I can sense that you're not evil, but it would be a lot easier for me if you would show yourself."

"Very well."

Suddenly four large angelic wings burst forth from his back, clearing out all the flames around them. The flames were immediately replaced by clouds for the floor and the sun peering through several high clouds off to his left. The angel hovered about five feet above the ground, his wings glowing like sunlight reflecting off of ice and into ones eyes. He wore blue chain mail armor that fit loosely on him, and a large bronze-like war hammer strapped to his side that seemed like it had a thin layer of flame surrounding it, yet neither burning the angel nor his armor. His skin shone with a silver luster and his short hair was like platinum. Rei fell to her knees, struck down by the sheer beauty of what was before her.

"Arise, warrior of Mars, for I have a message for you and your friends." She was only able to rise to one knee, but she still averted her eyes from the brilliance. "There is a force from another world, a being never before seen in this dimension, that is coming. You must rise up and fight this darkness that seeks to invade and destroy all you hold dear. You will be able to fend off some attacks, but you will not be able to stop them alone. However, allies will come, some from your world, some from elsewhere, who will arrive when you need them most, but you all must stand strong. Although you are strong, you must fight with all your might, for this new enemy is powerful and ruthless. It delights in causing suffering and death, but if you have faith, you will prevail."

"But…when?"

"They will attack this week, and some of you will not remain in this world for long. Be prepared. Farewell."

Rei raised her hand as she tried to call out to the angel, but with a single flap of his wings, he rocketed up and out of her sight. She suddenly felt faint and fell over. Only her instincts forced her to awaken so she wouldn't fall into the fire. She did wake, and she was puzzled. First of all, she sat up when she awoke. Not only that, but she was in her pajamas in bed. "Was that a dream?" She glanced about to get her surroundings, but it didn't take long. She was in her room, and it was six in the morning. "Good grief, what was that?" She was about to dismiss the whole thing when she barely heard a whisper.

_be prepared_

Rei sat in shock for a moment. "It was real…from Kami-sama Himself. Geez, I have to make some phone calls.

(B-D)

"So what's so important that you called us all here on our day off?" asked Makoto.

"Yeah, it's not every day we get a day off for a water main break," added Minako.

"I wonder where Luna and Artemis are?" asked Ami, being drowned out by the others.

"I'm sorry, guys, but this is important…Usagi, put down my manga, now…"

"But I wanna see what happens to Narue!"

Rei seethed for a moment. She didn't want to make a scene today.

"Did you have another vision, Rei?" asked Ami.

"Yeah, I did. And this is serious, this time."

"But it's always serious," said Usagi as she refused to put down Rei's _World of Narue_ manga. "The bad guys come, we beat them, and we can get ice cream afterwards…"

Suddenly the manga was swiped from her hands. She turned around to see a tall person with short blond hair holding it.

"It's not gonna be like all the others, princess," she said.

"Haruka?" exclaimed the scouts.

"And I brought some friends."

They all looked at the door and three figured faded in from the light. Two were tall women with long hair, and the other was a short, skinny girl with medium hair.

"So, what're you guys doing here?" asked Minako.

"The same reason you are here," replied Setsuna. "We're here to listen to Rei's vision. Really, you should call me when you are visited by an angel."

This floored the inner senshi.

"An angel?"

"Why didn't you say something earlier?"

"Angels really exist?"

"Quiet down, everybody! I can't talk when everyone's yelling!"

After several minutes of commotion everyone was finally seated around Rei. Even Usagi was paying attention, as she was fascinated by angels. Rei took a deep breath.

"Every time I've performed the fire reading ritual, I've always seen glimpses of a possible future, what may happen if we were totally unaware, but last night was different. At first it was a figure in the flames walking toward me claiming to come in peace. When I asked him to show himself, he blew away the flames with one flap of his wings. He was the most beautiful being I've ever seen, but he was just a messenger. He was sent to warn us that a new enemy was coming, one not from any world we know of. We have to fight, but we won't be able to stop it alone."

"How can we not stop them?" asked Mamoru. "If we can't stop them, what's to keep them from taking over the world?"

"This enemy doesn't want to take over; it wants to cause as much suffering as it can before destroying it. He did say that allies would come, but we still have a tough fight on our hands."

"So did he say when they would attack?" asked Michiru.

"He only told me this week, although I get the feeling that it'll be sooner rather than later."

"I agree," said Setsuna. "I, too, as briefly visited by this angel, with four wings, if I'm not mistaken." Rei nodded in amazement. "Yes, I was quite amazed myself that such a high ranking angel would come simply to deliver a message. This must be a powerful enemy, and we must be prepared."

"That was something he mentioned repeatedly, about being prepared…and something else…"

Usagi placed a hand on her shoulder as Rei started to cry. "What is it, Rei?"

"He said that…some of us…won't make it…" she couldn't go on. She had the strength, but when she looked around and saw the faces of all her friends as she tried to speak, she just broke down. An angel told her this, so it was not a ruse, a trick, some clever ploy to scare them. She knew he was real, and Setsuna proved that much to her.

Everyone else was in a stunned silence as Rei's last statement sank in. They glanced about the room. Hotaru was clinging to Michiru. Usagi was doing the same to Mamoru. They had faced death before and survived, but this time…

(B-D)

It had been a rough several days. It was excruciating to try to study knowing that some of her friends may not be alive after the weekend, or worse yet, she might not be. They had been practicing their team coordination with the outers for the past four days. They've progressed nicely, but they all had the same thought…was it enough?

"Ami!"

She shook her head of these thoughts as she turned around to see Hotaru and Michiru coming toward her.

"Oh, hello. How are you?"

"About as good as expected," Michiru replied, "but I thought Hotaru and I would take a little fun break today. Looks to me like you could use a break, too."

"Um…"

"It would be fun," said Hotaru, "and we haven't really done anything together except for saving the world."

Ami giggled. "Alright, I guess I can hang out with you for a while."

"Yea!" they exclaimed, Hotaru being more excited than Michiru.

The three went to the local arcade to enjoy watching Hotaru playing video games. What they didn't see was a small, brown creature with large, black eyes carrying a brown sack on its back in the alley next to the arcade. It would run around for a moment before stopping and did what seemed like a little dance. Suddenly it would stop with a puff of smoke and go on to another spot adjacent to the spot on the ground it was just at and repeat the process. Although it wasn't seen, people who had walked by noticed that the ground was slowly turning red, seemingly one sidewalk block at a time.

(B-D)

It was only a matter of time before somebody noticed. Unfortunately, it was a four-year-old girl that was the first. In the very same arcade that Ami, Hotaru, and Michiru were taking a well deserved break, this little girl noticed something near the back of the game room. She walked up to see a strange little alien-thing doing a dance at the doorway. Nobody else saw them. She started to mimic the dance she saw the thing doing, until the smoke puffed up. Few people noticed the floor color change from blue and white tile to red and brown, but the results were fast and horrible. Out of nowhere and green hand appeared near the ceiling and hovered there for a few seconds. Then, as a news reporter would say several hours later, 'The gates of hell broke open." For most, they came out of nowhere. Four creatures dropped from the ceiling and landed flat on there backs, startling everyone around them. As soon as the first creature stood up it started chanting something. Someone screamed in agony as a fireball hit her square in the chest. People started to panic as the others got up and started attacking innocents indiscriminately. The three scouts found a hiding place to see what the enemy looked like. One was wearing purple robes and casting fireballs in every direction. Two looked like black knights from some Monty Python movie with jet black armor and black broadswords. The forth looked like some kind of orange lizard that stood at an impressive five feet on its hind legs. It, too, was spitting fireballs and clawing at people.

"They're heartless!" exclaimed Michiru.

"We have to save them," cried Hotaru. "I won't let this continue."

"We won't," replied Ami. "This must be the enemy Rei and Setsuna were talking about."

"Definitely," said Michiru.

"You two help those people. I'll call the others."

Michiru and Hotaru nod as they stood to transform.

"NEPTUNE PLANET PO…!"

_**FOOM! FOOM!**_

Michiru quickly ducked and took Hotaru with her as two fireballs aimed at her head barely missed.

"Wow, they're quick," said Hotaru.

"Yeah," gasped Michiru as she peeked over the counter, "and now here they come…you two stay here. I'll run and distract them while you two transform."

"But…" started Ami, but Michiru had already jumped the counter and ran through the creatures, which was impressive considering she was wearing a full-length dress. It did get their attention as they left the now ruined arcade to give chase.

"We have to help her!" yelled Hotaru.

"I know," said Ami. "We'll transform now and then we can help."

"Right…what are those?" Hotaru asked as she pointed to several brown beings with large, black eyes running in and seeming to dance with the walls.

(B-D)

"…and that's why I think parallel dimensions do exist."

"Usagi, that's got to be the dumbest thing I've ever heard."

"Well Ami would agree with me."

"Rei, stop picking on her."

"Like you agree with her, Minako?"

"Despite her history, she did have a few actual points…"

"Oh please…"

_**Beep! Beep! Beep!**_

The three froze when they heard the communicator going off. Usagi hesitantly answered.

"Please tell me this is a drill…" she answered.

"I wish it was," replied Ami in a somewhat panic state. "Saturn's fighting three creatures while I'm taking care of Neptune. This is it. We need you now! Wait, three? Where's the lizard creature?"

And that's when the link went dead.

"Oh no," gasped Minako.

"We don't even know where they are…" exclaimed Rei.

"We'll find…"

_**Beep! Beep! Beep!**_

This startled them out of their panic as the communicator went off again.

"Ami, are you all right?"

"This is Jupiter. Mercury's safe for the moment. Uranus and I happened here at the same time, but we still need your help. These guys are tough."

"Where are you?"

"At the arcade where Andrew used to work at…"

"We're on our way."

"Right. See you here."

"You guys ready?" asked Usagi, only to find herself alone.

"Come on, meatball head!" yelled Rei from the doorway with Minako. "Hurry up!"

"I'm coming!"

(B-D)

_**CLANG!**_

"What are you made off?" exclaimed Uranus as she struck the black knight in the midsection with the business end of her sword.

"HUUUYYYYY! HUT! HUT! HUT!" it responded as it commenced attacking her again. Tuxedo Mask had arrived and was fighting the other knight while Saturn stayed back healing Mercury and Neptune. As she healed, she was looking around, trying to figure out where the robed one and the lizard went. She had taken out the robed magic user, but now she couldn't find its body anywhere. Jupiter had just jumped in to help Uranus. This fight shouldn't last much longer.

"Ow, that hurts."

"Oh, sorry, Mercury."

"We're still alive, Saturn?"

"Uranus, Jupiter, and Tuxedo mask showed up to help. Neptune is still out, but I already finished healing her."

"What are they?"

"You've been asking that a lot."

"Well, I can't get any more reading since they destroyed my mercury computer…I didn't think that was possible…"

"Me neither. What were you able to get on these guys before?"

"Not much, other then they've been magically reinforced by something powerful for increased resistance to overall damage, and that they didn't really have any weak spots, but if I had some more time…"

"Just return to normal and transform back," said a voice behind them, startling the two back into their battle stances, only to see the last three scouts before them. Sailor Moon finished her statement. "Your computer will replace itself."

"That was actually an intelligent idea, Moon," commented Mars. "The end of the world must be upon us."

"Shut up, Mars…" Moon seethed as Venus giggled to herself.

"Sailor Moon, you made it," said Neptune as Moon knelt beside her.

"Yeah, we're here. Sorry we couldn't be here sooner."

They all stood as Neptune spoke.

"Yes, but I believe this is just a scouting party."

"So this is just the beginning?" asked Moon, nobody liking where this was going.

"Yes."

_**WHAM!**_

The scouts cringed when they saw Uranus slam against the wall. They looked back out to the battle field to find that the lizard had returned, but there was a new creature with it. This one seemed to be humanoid, but tall and lanky, wearing light blue and white loose clothes and its head wrapped up like a terrorist. They didn't notice the others, as they were both going toward Tuxedo Mask and Jupiter.

"Oh no they don't," said Moon as she made her move.

"Don't bother with your speach, Moon," warned Mercury. "They aren't affected by it. They almost took Neptune's head when she tried to transform the first time."

"But…but…" as Moon started to whimper.

"Let's just get out there and kick some tail, guys," said Venus.

They nodded and leapt out as one to overwhelm the four creatures.

(B-D)

This battle was a lot shorter than it was before, now that they outnumbered them two-to-one this time. The dark knights were the first to fall, followed by the terrorist-looking creature. Only the lizard was left, and it was surrounded.

"Ok, Charizard, the game's over!" exclaimed Moon, extracting groans from all present and those reading this.

"Moon," seethed Mars.

"Doesn't it look more like a Charmeleon, though?" asked Saturn.

"Yeah, you're right," replied Moon.

"Ladies, can we just finish this thing off?" asked Tuxedo Mask.

"Right," said Moon as she prepared her final attack.

"Moon, above you!" exclaimed Pluto from the top of lamppost behind Mars and Saturn.

Heeding Pluto's warning before wondering why she was on top of a nearby lamppost was an instinct drilled into them a long time ago, so they weren't caught off-guard when they saw a disembodied, winkled green hand hovering directly above the lizard. What they weren't expecting was it picking it up.

"What are you doing? Show yourself!" yelled Moon.

"Yeah, great," quipped Venus. "I've heard of talking to the hand, but this…"

Nobody would know how Venus was going to finish that statement, as suddenly the hand went in a large circle around the scouts and started dropping more and more creatures on the ground. As the creatures landed, they fell painfully on their backs in a daze. The scouts glanced at each other and nodded, knowing that if they didn't strike now, they'd be overwhelmed in a minute. That's when things started to shake. It was a low level earthquake that had struck as soon as the last creature was dropped from the disembodied hand. This caught the scouts off guard completely. After a few moments, everybody was on the ground, including Pluto, who then vowed to never watch over a battle from the top of a lamppost ever again. All combatants recovered at once, and now the scouts were the ones that were surrounded and outnumbered.

"Any ideas, Moon?" ask Uranus.

"I'm open to suggestions," Moon replied.

And that's when things started to explode.

(B-D)

…one minute earlier…

"Heck with that. Why the heck are they all wearing sailor skirts in battle?"

"That quake was localized," said Washu, ignoring Ranma's comment. "Everything outside the battlefield is relatively safe, but those girls need some help."

"No kidding," said Ryoko. "There's gotta be like thirty monsters down there.

"So what are we waiting for, comrades?" exclaimed Kuno. "Those fair maidens must be rescued post haste."

"Yeah, but there's something familiar about those monsters," said Guy.

"Analyze later, fight now," said Washu. "I'll do some research from here."

"Let's go!" exclaimed Tenchi as the JLA leapt into action.

Ryoko was the first to attack, shooting blasts from her hand into random concentrations of creatures, then she accidentally a propane tank, which took out six creature right there. Ayeka landed in the middle of the scouts and raised her shield to protect the scouts. Kuno, Ukyou, and Tenchi ran through creatures, performing hit-and-run techniques where Ranma was jumping on monsters' head, kicking them in the process.

"Are you all ok?" yelled Ayeka over the explosions.

"Yeah," replied Moon. "Thanks for the help."

"I believe that is what we're here for."

"You must be the allies we were told about," said Mars.

"Um, I guess…"

"Hey!" yelled Guy. "If you all are ok and can still fight, we could use a little help out here!"

"All right, scouts," exclaimed Moon, "let get 'em!"

Ayeka released her shield as the scouts leapt out in every direction to battle the creatures. Fortunately the propane explosion had taken out six creatures, thus the Scouts and JLA were only outnumbered by about two-to-one, so the battle was merely one of the toughest fights any participant had ever fought. Tenchi brought out his Tenchi Sword, only for it to be blocked by the sword of some evil-looking creature with angel wings, and was almost blindsided by a lizard when he paused to say "What the?" Ranma had his own problems as several curvy female creatures wielding whips, wearing leather, and laughing rather seductively at him, making him very nervous. Guy had pulled out a pair of morning stars and had decided that deflecting the incoming fireballs from the chanting purple robed creatures was a bad idea. Good thing for him Mercury took out the fireballs. Ukyou and Uranus were having trouble with a couple of half-arachnid half-woman spitting webbing at them. Tuxedo Mask, Saturn, and Kuno were fighting off three dark knights while Ryoko, Venus, and Mars were busy fighting two more lizards, two other robed chanters, a dark knight, and a fat, legless reddish monster with flails dangling off of either horn sticking out off each side of its head. Pluto and Moon were also busy with a couple of the leather-clad obviously female creatures. Suffice it to say, the battle was somewhat intense. No creature seemed to want to go down, but they did eventually, but so did some of their number as well. Kuno was the first to get knocked out, follow by Jupiter and Neptune.

During the battle Guy noticed something happening on the sidelines. He saw one of those big-eyed imp-like creatures run up to one of the downed creatures from the propane explosion and it carried the creature off. That's when it hit him...from behind by a giant man-eating fly. He had to roll to avoid another lizard trying to bite his head off.

"Everybody, cover your eyes!" yelled Washu from the top of the building.

"Who...?" started Mars.

"Never mind, just do it!" yelled Ryoko.

Washu tossed a flash grenade into the field, exploding with a brilliant flash, blinding most of the creatures and Sailor Uranus, who didn't hear the warning. When the flash faded, Saturn unleashed her Silence Glaive Surprise attack on a large group of creatures as the good guys leapt to safety. Ranma had jumped in to get Uranus out of the way. When the smoke cleared, only fifteen creatures remained on their feet. Suddenly about twenty imp-like creatures were dropped from the disembodied hand. They paused for a moment before running around in every direction, picking up the unconscious creatures ad running back to the same general direction. The other creatures backed away and started to retreat.

"They're running!" exclaimed Saturn.

"After an attack like that, what else would you expect," said Ukyou.

"Thank you for your help," said Moon.

"Man, what a mess," replied Ryoko.

"What were those things?" asked Mercury.

"Don't know," said Ranma.

"Is everyone ok?" asked Washu as she appeared among everyone, startling the scouts.

"Um, yeah, I think…" started Moon.

"Unhand her, vile creature!" yelled Kuno, drawing everyone's attention.

Kuno was attacking one of the small imp-like creatures as it tried to carry off Pluto. It was a little too quick for him, however, and it managed to outrun him, even while carrying Pluto who had to be at least three times its weight. This postponed introductions and had everyone running after the imp.

"Where's Sailors Jupiter and Neptune?" asked Venus.

"Who?" asked Ranma.

"The other two taller ones of us!" yelled Uranus.

"There!" pointed Ryoko as she, while flying overhead, saw another three imps carrying Jupiter, Neptune, and Tuxedo Mask.

They all gave chase, but due to their earlier battle, they were tired, and had lost it once it entered the wooded area of the nearby park. Everybody stopped for a moment.

"WHERE'D THEY GO!" yelled Uranus.

"I can't see them anywhere," replied Ranma from the top of a tree.

"What's with the weird color scheme in this park?" asked Ukyou.

"What do you mean..." started Mercury until she also noticed. "Oh."

"This park isn't supposed to have red pathways," said Mars.

"I was hoping that you guys had better taste than that," said Washu.

"Where's Tuxedo Mask?" Moon finally noticed.

"Any ideas, Guy?" asked Tenchi.

"Unfortunately, yeah, I do"

"So you have fought this enemy before?" asked Mercury.

"No, this one's different, if it's what I think it is. Do you guys have an internet?"

"Of course," answered an indignant Moon.

"Cool. Washu, can you do a search for…what's it called…_Dungeon Keeper 2_…"

"You don't mean _Dungeon Keeper_ the game, do you?" asked Uranus.

"Yeah, that's it."

"So what does a video game have to do with this situation?" she asked.

"Because that's what we had to fight against in the last dimension we were in," Guy replied.

"Although we do appreciate your help earlier," said Mercury, "but who are you people?"

"And since when were you into video games, Uranus?" asked Venus.

Uranus frowned at her while Washu spoke up.

"I guess you could call us the Justice League of Animé. We're pretty much here to recruit heroes from different dimensions to help stop a war from destroying everything we know and love. We try to help when we can, as some strange stuff has been happening recently. I'm Washu, the leader."

"See, I told you parallel dimensions exist," said Moon, sticking her tongue out at Mars while taking her mind off of Tuxedo Mask. "I am Sailor Moon, protector of peace and justice and love. And these are my friends, the Sailor Senshi. We would like your help in rescuing our friends."

"Ugh, why are girls always like that?" moaned Ranma.

_**SMACK!**_

"Shut up before you get hurt, Ranchan," answered Ukyou as she replaced her battle spatula.

"So that still leaves the question," said Uranus, obviously struggling with the time not being spent looking for Neptune, "What does a video game have to do with Neptune, Pluto, and Jupiter being kidnapped?"

"And Tuxedo Mask..." added Moon.

"Guy, take a look at this," said Washu as she turned to Uranus and Moon. "Because last time a bad guy from a video game kidnapped some of Ranma's friends. This is very similar to what we've faced so far. If we know how to beat the game, we can do the same in real life, too."

"Yep, I was afraid of that," said Guy. "Um, what's your name?"

"Sailor Uranus."

"Ok, Sailor Uranus, you're at least familiar with _Dungeon Keeper_. Looking back at that fight, don't any of those monsters look like they came from that game?"

"I've only played a few…oh no, those were Mistresses!"

"What kinds of game is that?" asked Moon with a slight blush.

"Hey," yelled Ryoko from a distance. "I found something!"

Conversation halted as everyone bolted toward Ryoko's direction. They were deep in the wooded area where Ryoko and Ryo-Ohki stood.

"Myeh! Hiss!"

"They went down here," said Ryoko as she motioned to a hole in the ground.

"Well, what are we waiting for?" Seethed Uranus as she hopped down the hole.

"Uranus!" yelled Moon as she leapt after her.

"Sailor Moon!" yelled the other scouts as they followed suit.

"Guess we're going in now," said Washu as she hopped in after the scouts, followed by the rest of the JLA.

They expected a long drop to depths unknown in the bowels of the earth near the line where crust becomes magma. What they got was a two second drop on to a hard stone floor, made more painful by the pile formation everybody assumed while landing.

"Ow…" said Guy.

"That hurt, you know," quipped Kuno.

"Um, Washu?" said Venus.

"Yeah?" She answered painfully.

"Your foot?"

"What about it?"

"Remove from my spleen?"

"Oh, sorry, as soon as this giant spatula gets outta my face."

"I'm working on it, sugar, but Ayeka's heavy."

"You're all heavy," cried Ranma from the bottom of the pile,   
just get offa me!"

"How did you get to the bottom of the pile, Ranma?" asked Ayeka.

After about ten minutes they had managed to untangle themselves and properly introduce themselves so they could stop referring to each other as 'You' or 'Um'. Ranma was getting mixed glances from the scouts, some admiring what they saw, others sore about his "heavy" comment earlier.

"So the only planet not represented happens to be our home, eh?" says Guy.

"No, Tuxedo Mask represents Earth," answered Mercury.

"Interesting…um, Sailor Uranus, you know we're trying here…"

"You know what the Keeper does to its prisoners, right?"

"Actually, I'm the fighting games expert of the family. My brother is the strategy game guy…"

"He tortures them until they either die or join his side," she seethed. "The more time we waste here, the more they get tortured…"

"Uranus," said Moon, "I know this isn't easy, but we're doing our best."

"I say we go in there and get them out…"

"And then we'd have to fight all those monsters again on their home turf with four less to our number and tired while they've had a chance to rest and recover and, according to my research on this game from various websites, will be back at full strength by the time we got here…" Washu waited for Uranus to stop casting death glares at her. "Look, I said that we're here to help, and we're trying, but going in half-cocked is gonna get us killed. I'm trying to figure out where they are so we can get to them a soon as possible, but I'll admit. I'm a scientist, not a tactician, but I'm also responsible for my people, too. Even though my scanners are very advanced, there are so many variables…"

"I wish I could help…" started Guy.

_**BOOM! STUMBLE! Oof!**_

Instincts kicked in for most warriors present and they twirled around in battle ready stance as the hole produced yet another pile of people. They were quicker to recover, though, and suddenly there were about five groups posed to attack in a classic standoff.

"Who are you and what have you done to my friend?" exclaimed one girl holding some kind of small pink and yellow staff with a bird-like head and wearing an interesting yellow and white dress that seems designed for fashion rather than battle. The boy at her side was wearing a green and red Chinese-style battle outfit with a ying-yang symbol on his chest and brandished a small broadsword. The other girl was also wearing a Chinese-style battle outfit, but was light purple and white. They appeared to be junior high school age.

"I know one of you is responsible for taking my precious C-ko from me," demanded another girl in what seemed like a brownish high-tech bikini and a sleek, matching helmet. At her side was a fiery red-head with bracers and wearing a sailor-style school uniform. They were both obviously high school aged. Behind them was a large black…person with bulging muscles and twin pigtails while emanating a low, consistent growl. "You will return her to me."

"No way, nyah," responded the last group of five apparent catgirls, causing Ranma to hide behind Sailor Saturn, "one of you guys took some of our friends, nyah, and we're gonna get'em back!"

There were several moments of tense silence between the five groups, nobody wanting to make the first attack.

"Um," mumbled a lone voice off to the side, gaining everyone's attention. It was a lone young girl wearing a really cute pink and yellow outfit with a pink paddle-like wand with a pink and yellow heart on top. She had a small, brown, long-eared furry creature at her feet. "I'm missing a friend, too…can any of you help me find her?"

Another moment passed as everyone relaxed for a moment, still unsure as to how to proceed. Washu motioned to Guy to see something on her screen. Mercury also joined them.

"Is that what I think it is, Guy, or am I reading this completely wrong?" whispered Washu.

"Goodness," whispered Mercury.

"I think the phrase in Japanese is 'holy crossovers, Batman'."

(B-D)

A/N - Wow, three months since I last updated. I'm so sorry, everyone, but I'm just finishing my Oracle Database class, which took up a LOT of time. I don't believe in letting my stories die, and I promise that I'll finish this story.

Anyway, you may have noticed that this SM world is a little different than from the cannon. I tri to keep it as true to cannon as I can, but this time it was Ryoga's fault (refer to last chapter). I didn't expect the red pulse, but that will be explained later (unexpected, but I at least know what happened). So now that I've finally updated, I'm going to try to keep up a two-month schedule per chapter. As always, I an open to suggestions, as I have two more planned stops before the recuirtment arch is over and we get to the actual war. I can make an additional stop or two if the idea is good enough.

Next chapter this will remain here in the Sailor Moon section, and as always, I'll let you know when this story will move again.If you can't find it, just check out my profile. Ok, I'll let you get on with the rest of your life, now. :)


	9. Army of Magical Girls vs Dungeon Keeper

Disclaimer: Rumors of the death of this story are greatly exaggerated, if there were any to begin with. If there were, I'm actually glad that I made an impact somehow. Oh, and I don't own any characters at all in this story except Guy. :)

* * *

**Army of Magical Girls vs. Team Dungeon Keeper**

"I think the phrase in Japanese is 'holy crossovers, Batman'."

Washu responded by bopping Guy on the head with a toy hammer.

"Everyone, please, listen to me," said Moon as she stepped out to address everyone. "You all seem to have lost some friends to these things, and so have we. We've fought these monsters before, and we are about to again, but we need your help. We can put aside our differences and work together to get our loved ones back. We can't do this on our own, but with your help, I believe we can."

"And who are you?" asked the techno-bikini-clad girl asked.

"I am Sailor Moon," she posed, "soldier of love and justice. I punish those who do wrong and help those in need, and that means you." -

Everyone stared at Sailor Moon for several moments. The young girl wearing a really cute pink and yellow outfit with a pink paddle-like wand with a pink and yellow heart on top took a few steps toward her. The scouts tensed for a moment, as did the 'catgirls.'

"Count on Sammy to help find missing loved ones!" she counter-posed. "Magical Girl Pretty Sammy! I'll come and help, despite not knowing what's going on."

The catgirl in pink glanced at her teammates, who all nodded. Then she stepped up.

"We are also protectors of justice, Tokyo Mew Mew. To protect the Earth, we're at your service," as the whole group posed.

All eyes now went to the three girls…or at least, they thought that the big one was a girl if the twin pigtails were any indication. The one in the bikini had her face buried in her hand while the redhead glanced about nervously. The big girl just stood there, wondering what was wrong with these people.

"Um," started the redhead, "we just a couple of high school girls that are looking for our friend. I guess we can help if you help us, right, B-Ko?"

"Uhg, how do I let you get me into this stuff, A-Ko."

"I'll take that as a yes," A-Ko replied.

"How about you?" asked Moon as she made eye contact with the girl with the star wand. "Will you help us find our friends?"

The three glanced at each other for a moment.

"Sure, it would be nice not to have to fight all of these monsters by ourselves. I am Sakura, and these are my friends Shaoron and Meilin."

"Nice you meet you all," welcomed Moon, relieved that she was received well by everyone. "These people here are the Justice League of Animé. They have the best idea of what we're up against. Washu here is their leader."

"Man, I thought we had a bunch of magical girls before…" started Ranma.

"Don't start, Ranchan," warned Ukyou. "With this many girls around, do you really want them all to be mad at you?"

Ranma grumbled.

Washu walked out to address the crowd.

"Hi. If anybody here has any gaming experience, please come and see Guy over here. He'll explain in detail what we're up against. I'll give everybody else the simple version."

"Sakura, what's wrong?" asked Sammy.

"There's a presence here, just like before. THERE!" she pointed as drew everyone's attention to the disembodied hand above. Everybody recognized it and tensed for battle, and it didn't disappoint. It began to move in random directions as it started dropping white monsters around everywhere. The Mew Mews, Ranma, Shaoran, and Ryoko leapt into the air just before another small earthquake tripped everybody up again. Those who were in the air landed and began to attack the creatures when Mew Lettuce (the green Mew Mew) screamed.

Everyone else got to the feet to find their personal space being invaded by lots and lots of skeletons, freaking out the majority of the girls present.

"You gotta be kidding me!" yelled Guy.

"NO!" yelled other random people.

"Don't destroy any of them, everyone!" shouted Uranus. "Moon! Try to heal them!"

"Heal…them?"

"Those used to be people?" cried Mew Ichigo. (the red Mew Mew).

"She's right!" confirmed Guy. "The Dungeon Keeper did this to them. I don't know if healing magic will work, though, but there is still hope."

"Do it!" yelled Washu as she typed furiously on her computer.

"Right!"

"RIBBON STRAWBERRY…SURPRISE!" called Mew Ichigo.

"SILVER MOON! CRYSTAL POWER KISS!" shouted Sailor Moon.

"PRETTY COQUETTISH BOMBER!" shouted Sammy.

"Whoa!" yelped Ukyou as she dodged a big heart flying by. "Watch where you're throwing those things!"

Their attacks hit several skeletons, blasting them a few yards away. The girls stared in horror as the skeleton stood once again and advanced on them.

"What?" exclaimed Moon.

"No…" whispered Strawberry.

"Uh oh…" said Sammy as her target was barely able to get up. "That was too close."

"Ah, so that's how it is, eh?" said Washu as she reviewed the results on her laptop. "You guys almost did it, but we need something else."

"What else is there?" cried Moon.

"If you need something more," inserted Sakura, "I think I may have it."

"Good," replied Washu, "but we need to get those skeletons together for one shot. Otherwise, we may have a bunch of innocents laying around."

"I'm on it!" yelled Ranma as he left Washu's side.

"Huh? When was Ranma next to me?" asked Washu.

(B-D)

"So, you're finally awake, eh?"

"Unn, who?"

"It's me, Kero."

"Kero? What?" as he shot up. He found themselves in a dark, poorly-kept prison. "Where are we?" asked the floating yellow plush toy with wings.

"I don't know, Yukito, but I sense that Sakura in near. I think she came to save us."

"Ok, but where are we?"

"Nobody seems to know for sure," answered a tan junior high school boy with short hair.

"Kero…" started Yukito.

"It's ok. This is Aoyama. He's a prisoner too, as well as everyone else here."

Yukito looked around to see over twenty people standing around in various degrees of starvation and suffering. The only people who showed much life was a young blonde girl crying something about 'Ako' while another young girl with long, dark hair tried to comfort her. A second girl, junior high school age with long, black hair, was comforting them both.

"Tomoyo?"

"Yukito!" She ran and hugged him. "What's happening? Where's Sakura?"

"Don't worry, Tomoyo," soothed Yukito, "Sakura's coming. Kero, let's get out of here."

"No, don't!" shouted the younger girl with dark hair.

"Why not?"

"Some have already tried, and they were taken away."

"What?"

"This is…Misao," said Kero. "That girl over there says her name is C-Ko." Yukito raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, I thought that was strange, too. Anyway, there were four others, three magical girls and a magical guy in a tux. They tried to get out, but were grabbed by that hand that we saw in our first battle. We've been hearing their screams in the other room ever since."

Yukito winced as he barely heard the scream of one of the scouts.

"It seems to take those that show some kind of power," said Misao.

"And the rest he leaves in here to die of starvation," finished Aoyama.

"What?"

"Yeah," said Kero, "That's why we haven't tried to get out, yet."

"But what about…"

"We don't have a choice," said Aoyama. "Kero noticed that Misao and I could use magic, but after what happened to the others, we all agreed, reluctantly, to wait for a better opening…"

_**poof!**_

"Huh? WHAT THE!" yelled Yukito. One of the people was looked on the verge of death was enveloped by a puff of smoke, and suddenly a skeleton stood in it's place, armed with a sword and shield. It silently walked to the door, which opened on its own, and let the skeleton walk out. The door closed itself behind it. "What was that?"

"That's what happens if we stay here too long," said Kero. "If we show our power, that thing'll take us away, probably get tortured like I think the others are. If we do nothing, we become those."

"Don't worry," said Misao. "I know that Sammy will be here to save us."

"And I know that Ichigo and the others will be here, also," said Aoyama.

"So it looks like we'll have several people coming to help, Yukito."

"Yeah. I just hope they don't get captured, too, Kero."

(B-D)

Just one room over from the prison was another room. Here the mistresses gathered to share in their favorite pastime, torture. Today they had a few new toys to play with. Two mistresses worked on Tuxedo Mask as he spun slowly on a large wheel on the west wall. There was a trough of water at the bottom of the wheel just high enough that a normal sized person on the wheel would have their head submerged under the putrid water while they were upside down. Another mistress was having fun with Jupiter on a wheel on the north wall. This one featured hot coal under the wheel instead of putrid water, causing most of her hair to get burned off after the first few rotations. The mistress didn't bother putting it out. Another one was dealing with Pluto on a third wheel, this one on the floor. This mistress took much delight in whipping the front of Pluto's body. Another one soon joined in on the fun. Neptune was just as unfortunate. She had the last two mistresses seeming to debate over which was more painful, AC or DC current, and were using her as a measuring rob as she screamed from her electric chair. She never once thought about where the electricity to power the chair was coming from, but there was one thought going through each of their minds. 'Please, save us, Sailor Moon.'

(B-D)

"NOW!" yelled Ranma.

"MERCURY SHABON SPRAY!"

The skeletons paused for a moment as a mist decreased visibility to almost nothing. The goodguys took this chance to get out of the mist area.

"WINDY! DRAW OUR ENEMIES TOGETHER FOR A SINGLE STRIKE!" yelled Sakura as she activated her Sakura card with her star wand.

Soon a whirlwind swept all the skeletons into one place and held them all in the air.

"RIBBON PUDDING RING INFERNO!"

"RIBBON MINT ECHO!"

Suddenly several skeletons in the middle of the bunch were encased by some kind of yellow jello-like substance by Mew Pudding (the yellow one with a monkey's tail), which was hit but a blue heart shot by Mew Mint (the blue one with the mini wings) that expanded the jello to encompass all of them.

"Ready?" asked Moon.

"Yes," replied Mew Ichigo, Sammy, and Sakura.

"RIBBON STRAWBERRY SURPRISE!" called Mew Ichigo.

"SILVER MOON! CRYSTAL POWER KISS!" shouted Sailor Moon.

"PRETTY COQUETTISH BOMBER!" shouted Sammy.

"Help the others to heal these people and break this spell! HOPE!" chanted Sakura.

The three attacks hit the blob of skeletons as several heart shapes enveloped them. Then there was an explosion of all colors, blinding everyone. When the light died down a sigh of relief was exhaled by all, as there was now a pile of unconscious, and very hungry people.

"We did it!" exclaimed a lot of girls.

"Yes, it worked!" exclaimed Ranma.

"Wow, I can't believe that worked," said Guy to Washu, who had just finished praying.

"Ryoko, go into our storage room and get some food for these people," said Washu.

"Um, Miss Washu?" said Mercury.

"Just call me Washu."

"Yes, Washu. It seems your scan of the dungeon is finished."

"What scan?" she asked as she checked her computer. What she found was a complete layout of the dungeon that they were in, including their current location. "Wow, ask and you shall receive."

"What happened?" asked Uranus.

"Everyone, I need anybody who's good at tactics to come here. We just got ourselves a map to find our friends!"

And there was much rejoicing.

(B-D)

"I still don't know how you knew who had what powers to use in that last fight," said Guy as everyone advanced upon the dungeon proper.

"Well, I had nothin' that could heal anything, so I just watched what everybody else could do," said Ranma. "I've always been pretty good at coming up with new combos and techniques in battle, just this time I used other people's techniques instead of my own."

"That is impressive," said Tenchi. "That's a real gift you have there."

"When you've been training against my pops all your life, you gotta be quick on your feet."

"No kidding," replied Guy. "I have got to spar with you in the VERY near future."

"You're on, pal."

"But one thing still bothers me, though…"

"What is it, Guy?" asked Tenchi.

"It's the fact that those girls were actually able to change those skeletons back into humans. There's no game mechanic whatsoever that allows that."

"So what's your point?" asked Ranma.

"My point is that this is a game we're fighting against. Every game has rules that they must follow, especially the players. We blatently broke the rules of the game back there. I mean, yeah, it was to save lives, but what if we just enabled the Keeper to break some rules, too?"

"Dude," said Ranma, "I have no idea what you're talking about…"

"I think I do," inserted Mercury. "I have little experience with games, but I do know a good bit about computers. Programs generally don't go beyond their original programming, so even if we break a few rules, the program should still be bound to them."

"I hope to God you're right," said Guy. "If these enemies we're fighting continue to be from video games, let's hope that they don't get smart enough to break any rules themselves. Or even worse, if we continuously break and abuse certain rules, that we get nerfed."

"And what in the world do foam playthings have to do with us?" chided Ranma.

"It's basically when the powers-that-be decide that some attribute or element of a game is too powerful and they reduce it's power or effectiveness. It generally happens in online role-playing games. I just don't want to risk it. Last thing I need is to get nerfed."

"Sheesh, you're weird," said Ranma.

"You know," said Tenchi, "I have to agree with Ranma on this one."

"I don't know," said Mercury," it sort of makes sense."

"What, do you like Guy or somethin'?"

"NO!" she blushed. "I mean, we…we all just met."

As Mercury struggled to find a way out of that conversation, a few feet behind walked Ayeka, Ryoko, and Ukyou.

"So you two have been fighting over Tenchi for how long, now?"

"Several years, now, Ukyou," answered Ayeka.

"Yeah, it seems that he has something that attracts each of us," said Ryoko. "Sometimes I wonder just how the heck we all don't kill each other since we're all housemates."

"Man, I don't know if I should envy you or pity you. That's the only advantage Akane has over the rest of us, but I don't think any house could survive all of us living there at once."

"Well, if you were gonna have any chance with him, this is it," said Ryoko. "The only other person from your home is the Kuno boy, and I doubt that he'll get in your way."

"Oh, you'd be surprised, but I'm not worried about that…" she said as she glanced at the catgirl behind her. Her glance then went to a couple of the scouts, and to the Chinese girl with Sakura. That redhead was also of great concern. "I'm just a little concerned about our 'new recruits'."

"Don't worry about them," said Ayeka. "We've been keeping an eye on them. If they make a single move on my Tenchi Ryoko'll throw them into the front lines of the battle."

"Whoa, that's kinda harsh, ain't it?"

"Not to mention that Tenchi isn't yours."

"But what if that one person ends up being one of the people that's supposed to join us?"

Ayeka and Ryoko glanced at each other.

"Why must you bring logic into this discussion?" sighed Ayeka.

(B-D)

"Finally, we made it," exclaimed Washu as everyone ad reached their destination.

"Geez," complained Venus, "That must've been like several miles…"

"It wasn't that bad," said A-ko.

"Easy for you to say," replied B-ko. "You run through homes to get to school on time."

"Through homes?" asked Ryoko.

"Causing a lot of property damage…"

"Well, I was just in a rush…"

"Every day?"

"So sue me if my alarm clock can't wake me up in the morning."

"Be glad your neighbors don't," said Mars.

"Can we just get this started?" asked A-ko.

"Alright," said Washu, "is everyone ready?" She received nods from everyone. "Ok, we all know what we're doing, right?" Again with the nods. "Alright, B-ko. This is your plan, so we start phase 1 and 2 on your mark."

"Ok, A-ko, Ryoko, be dears and make us a doorway."

(B-D)

"Yes, it's well established that they do exist, but all I'm saying is that it would take an extraordinary amount of energy to travel between any one of them."

"My dear Verdemis, how many time do I have to tell you, an organic being is capable of creating portals to parallel dimensions, but the preferred method would be to create something that does not actually drain the being."

"But Stendhal, no being, not even our Keeper, can generate the necessary energy to not only create but maintain a portal of that magnitude."

"And yet we make daily raids on four to five different parallel dimensions."

"He uses a construct of unknown origin. It took all 10 of us warlocks over a year to even figure out that it was even a portal of some kind."

"So you admit that an intelligent being can indeed create a device that elicits interdimensional travel."

"But…but…"

_**CRASH! Rumble! Crumble!**_

"Well, Verdemis, saved by the breach."

"I do hate it when they do that. It always ruins the feng shui of the dungeon.

"Well, I believe it is time to go to battle mode."

"I'm afraid so, Stendhal. Shall we?"

"Let's."

"AAARRRHHHGGGG!"

There were about ten creatures in the lair when A-ko and Ryoko punched through the reinforced wall of the dungeon. The two rushed in, followed by Ranma, Shaoran, Tenchi, Guy, and all of Tokyo Mew Mews. The Keeper's hand appeared above them and began dropping creatures al around them. Once again a tremor hit, but the JLA was ready as they either floated or readjusted their balance to compensate. As the creatures stood, a massive attack from the Sailor Scouts and the Mew Mews, along with B-ko's missile barrage caused many of the creatures to fly about the lair violently. At this point the rest of the army of magical girls and JLA entered the lair and the fight had begun in earnest. Shaoran, Mew Zakuto (the purple Mew with wolf ears), and Sailor Uranus remained on the outskirts of the battle as they began ambushing the imps as they came to carry the creatures to their domiciles. After a half hour of intense battling the army's plan started to flesh out. The stronger creatures remained unconscience on the floor, forgotten by our heroes, and soon died. The Keeper did have more creatures come, but were considerably weaker than the ones it had been able to train and nurtured for so long. With a squad taking out the imps and the battle getting easier as time went on, not to mention Sailor Saturn's healing ability to bring their people back into the fight, B-Ko's plan was on point, and everyone could hear her laugh of triumph, which also happened to be the signal for phase 2 to begin.

Tenchi waved his Tenchi sword to summon the rest of the infiltration team. So to join him were Washu, Ranma, Sailor Moon, Mew Ichigo, Sakura, A-Ko, and Sammy. They gathered around Tenchi and began to proceed into the dungeon itself. This would've been an easy trek had it not been for the stupidly high number of traps ranging from lightning traps to the classic giant boulders in the narrow passageway.

"Man, where the heck did they get so many traps?" asked Ranma as A-Ko punched another boulder into pebbles.

"Don't know," said Washu, "but I know he can have a lot…but not this much…Watch out! Spikes!"

"Whoa!" yelled Ranma as spikes came out from the floor and almost skewered him. Mew Ichigo swiped at them with her bell, destroying the trap.

"This is getting pretty dangerous," said Moon.

"If you hadn't noticed yet," said A-Ko, "it's been dangerous for a while now."

"SHIELD!" yelled Sakura as she activated her shield card, blocking the lightning trap behind the boulder.

"Keep sharp, everybody," said Washu. "It looks like he's got traps set up every five feet."

"How far does this tunnel go?" asked Ranma.

"About a good fifty yards before a sharp turn."

"You have to be kidding…" sighed Sammy.

"Hey, Sakura?" called Ranma.

"Yes?"

"You got any spells that can attack over a long distance?"

"Yes, my Firey and Shot cards can."

"How about you guys?" as Ranma looked at Moon, Ichigo, and Sammy.

Ichigo and Sammy nodded yes while Moon looked downcast.

"It's ok, Moon. Ok, guys, let's do one massive attack down this tunnel to clear out all the traps."

"Ranma, if you keep this up I'm going to have to make you our official tactician," quipped Washu.

"Heh…"

"We're ready," said Sammy.

"On your mark, Washu," said Ranma as he readied himself.

"Just fire already!" Ranma joined in as the four unleashed their attacks down the tunnel causing much in the way of property damage. After a few seconds they heard an explosion farther down. A-Ko, Tenchi, and Sailor Moon gasped at the destruction. "Well, I'm impressed."

"But now it's all dark down there," whimpered Moon.

"Come and illuminate the path to our friends, LIGHT!"

Each person began to glow a different color and lit up the area.

"Wow, Sakura," said Tenchi.

"You have a card for everything, don't you?" asked Ichigo.

"Well, not everything."

"But why is everybody glowing a different color?" asked Moon.

"I'm not sure. It acts differently each time I use the Light card."

"I guess it goes by personality," observed Washu. "Tenchi is light blue, like his sword, A-Ko and Ichigo are red, Moon is white, Sakura and Sammy are pink, and Ranma is…a strange combination of blue, yellow, and dark red? Oh right, I forgot…you're a chaos point."

"A what?" asked Moon.

"Don't worry, he's good."

"What about you, Washu?" asked Ichigo. "You don't have any color from your glow."

"I don't?"

Sure enough, there was no color emminating from Washu, just normal light.

"I can't see it."

"We can," said Moon. "It's like normal light. No color at all."

"No" said Sakura, "I don't think its no color, but all of them."

"AAAAHHHHHYYYYYY!"

"What the?" everybody jumped as a goblin turned the corner and they watched as it ran in the opposite direction.

"Ok, so that monster is smarter than it looked," said Ranma.

"Can we go on, now?" asked A-Ko.

"By all means, let's get going," said Washu.

(B-D)

"They…aren't…coming…." panted Jupiter.

"They'll…be…here…" gasped Tuxedo Mask.

"Uranus…why?" cried Neptune.

"Must…hold…on…" whispered the barely conscious Pluto.

_**WU-PISH!**_

"AAGGHHH!" screamed Jupiter as one of the two mistresses whipped her again.

"Please…stop…" begged Pluto. "I'll…do…anything you want…"

"Hold that thought," said a voice behind the mistress.

Pluto's eyes lit up as someone tapped the mistress on the shoulder. In classic form, the mistress turned around to face an angry redhead.

**_POW!_**

Straight to the Moon, who then clocked it square on the head with her moon staff.

"What?" wheezed Mask as Tenchi and Ranma took down the other mistress.

"Those girls give me the creeps," said Ranma.

"Pluto! Neptune! Jupiter! Tuxedo….NNOOO!"

"Get those people down, quick!" yelled Washu.

(B-D)

_**rumble…**_

"Did you hear that, Kero?"

"Yeah, I did, Yukito."

"That's got to be them," said Aoyama.

"Is it time?" asked Misao.

"I say yes," said Yukito as he stood.

"Aoyama, can you do something about this door?" asked Kero.

"I doubt it. Those other girls hit that door pretty hard and nothing happened. I'm not even sure if I can use any of my magic…if you could call it that."

"How about you, Misoa…what the?"

"Hohohohohoho!" laughed a magical girl wearing mostly black with a curved fan-like wand. "I am no longer Misao. You may call me Pixy Misa!"

Everyone just stared at her with sweat beads for a few moments before Yukito spoke up.

"Can you help us take out that door?"

"But of course, darling. Those other girls were strong, but are nothing compared to me."

"Alright, then. Kero, let's do this."

"Right."

Spell circles appeared beneth each of them as angelic wings sprung from Yukito's back and enveloped him completely while Kero seemed to burst into a huge ball of flame. When the wings spread out Yukito was replaced by an elegant young man with light purple hair and an ornate suit. He ratained the angel wings. When the flame dispersed the small floating plush toy was replaced by a large cat-like beast with light armor and chimera wings on its back. Everyone in the prison were awestruck.

"Whoa, that's cool!" exclaimed C-Ko as she ran up and hugged beast. "And he's soooooooooo soft!"

"Whenever you are ready, Keraberos."

"When you can get this girl off of me, Yue…"

"C-Ko," said Tomoyo as she pried C-Ko off of Keraberos, "let's let them get us out of here so we can see A-Ko again, 'K?"

"But he's cute!"

"Come on," as Aoyama helped drag C-Ko away, finally freeing Keraberos from her clutches.

"Alright, Pixy Misa, Yue," said Keraberos, "FIRE!"

(B-D)

"Darien!" Moon cried as she clutched his hand as Washu was performing first aid to the torture victims in her nurse outfit.

"Looks like we got here just in time," said Washu. "Do you know where the others are?"

"No…" wheezed Pluto. "Can…barely…think…"

"Let's them rest," said Washu. "It's not often I see torture being used, but this was pretty extreme. They knew just how to keep them alive…" **_KA-BOOM!_** "Whoa!"

"I'll stay here with Washu," said Tenchi, "you guys go check that out. It didn't sound like anything the Keeper could do."

"Right!"

Everyone except Washu, Tenchi, and Moon left and cautiously ventured into the next room. There was a lot of smoke, but that cleared quickly. Ranma stepped forward as well as Sammy.

"Hello?" called out Ranma as he began to realize that they were in a prison.

"Anybody in there?" yelled Sammy.

"Sammy! You finally made it!"

"Misa!" The two met at the door. "You're still you!"

"Yeah, thanks to these guys.

"Kero! YUE!"

"Sakrura!"

"Ca-ca-ca-ca" studder Ranma as he backed up.

"What's wrong, Ranma?" asked Ichigo as her cat tail brushed against his arm.

"AAGGHHH!"

All reunions were interrupted by Ranma screaming as he tried to run out of the room, yet running into the wall instead, knocking himself out.

"What's wrong with him?" asked C-Ko.

"No clue," replied A-Ko as she began punching down the door from the outside.

(B-D)

"So he's afraid of cats, you say?" asked the floating plush toy.

"Yep," replied Washu. "When he saw your true form, he must of freaked. I'm just glad you all found out how to get out of there."

"Yeah, it was easy," said Sammy, "once we destroyed the whole room first."

"Well, you got out. That's the important thing. Next up is to find the dungeon heart so we can defeat the Dungeon Keeper so we can all go…home…okay, judging by you guys' expressions, let me explain. This being that imprisoned and tortured you is from a video game, but it found its way to our world. We have a bunch of other people holding off his army while we take care of the source. Once the heart is destroyed the Keeper will be no more and we can all go home to…whatever you guys came from."

"Wait, this is a game?" yelled Kero. "What's it called?"

"Um, Dungeon Keeper."

"Oh, nevermind. I haven't played this one…what system…"

"Computer game."

"Oh…oh well."

"Ca-ca-ca-ca-ca…" mumbled Ranma in a corner.

"Well, he'll be out for a while. A-Ko?"

"Sure, I'll carry him."

(B-D)

"Are you sure that this is a good idea, B-Ko?" asked Ryoko as everyone advanced into the dungeon.

"Yes, Ryoko. We've beaten all of the stronger creatures and the only ones that are coming are the weakest ones, and they're all running from us. As long as we all stay together, they won't bother us anymore."

"And you're sure you remember where Washu said the dungeon heart was?" asked Mercury.

"My mind is that of a genius, my dear. Remembering directions is mere child's play."

"Then how come you're going the wrong way?" asked Guy.

"What do you mean?"

"Washu downloading the map of the dungeon into my Mercury Computer, and it says that we should be making a right turn here, not go straight."

"Besides," continued Shaoron, "it's obvious which way the others went," as he glanced down the charred remains of the tunnel straight ahead.

"Not to mention that the heart is not even down this way, anyway," said a voice from the darkness of the tunnel, causing everyone to jump. They relaxed when they saw the infiltration team emerge with the newly freed prisoners. There was much running and hugging and yelling as Washu rejoined with the JLA. "So, what's up?"

"Just B-Ko trying to lead us nowhere, is all," said Ukyou.

"Don't worry about it," said Washu. "Let's just get this over with. According to this map, this Keeper didn't expect an attack through the lair, otherwise, he wouldn't have placed it so close to his heart. It should be right down this tunnel here."

"What about traps?" Tenchi.

"We can handle that."

"I think we have a better idea," said Kero as he, Yue, and Sakura came forward. "Sakura may be able to use her cards to give us a straight path to the heart."

"How?"

"This dungeon is like a maze, right?" asked Sakura. Washu nodded. "I have a Maze card that, over the years, I've learned how to use it to provide a straight path through a maze as well as put others into one. That and the Warp card can move us through the tunnels, bypass all the traps, and take us straight to the heart."

"Wow, an angel?" said Guy as he walked up.

"Don't mind him," said Washuas she waved off Guy, "but you can do that?"

"Well, this'll be the first time trying this with so many people…"

"What if we just take those with the most powerful attacks?" asked B-Ko.

"Any attacks will do," said Guy as he continues to stare at Yue, "but when the dungeon heart is under attack, I think the creatures either come to defend or the Keeper summons all creatures to it regardless of level, so we'd need some support for them."

"Alright," mumbled Washu before she turned to Sakura, "so do you think you could do it? Can you get us all there?"

"I'll do my best…"

"Do you need any help with that spell?" asked Ichigo.

"Not unless you can lend me some of your power."

"I think we can do something about that," Ichigo smirked at the other Mew Mews.

"What's wrong with Ranchan?" asked Ukyou as A-Ko came up carrying a curled up Ranma with one hand.

(B-D)

Within the dimly lit room stood an orb ornate in gold and silver. It stood, slowly pulsing with a dull white light as gold lay around in piles surrounding it. Beneath four ornate arches, sitting at an impressive 10 feet in diameter and seated within a pit filled with magma, this was indeed the heart of the Dungeon Keeper. The room was quiet except for the occasional creature passing through. They could enter freely because the many traps covering the three entrances are designed only to target intruders. Unfortunately for the Keeper, it had no experience verses teleportation. The east entrance pulsed red as a blue line eched itself around the frame and then pulsed blue. When the light faded, Sakura and Ichigo walked through. Seeing as the Maze card worked as hoped, they signaled the others to come through as well. The JLA and the army of magical girls stood in awe of this pulsating sphere below them. Finally, a voice spoke up.

"Doesn't this thing like talk or something?" asked A-Ko.

"Not that I know of," replied Guy.

"Well in that case let's blow this thing up," said Ryoko as she began to charge up a blast.

"Everyone, let'em have it!" yelled Washu as everybody started throwing all kinds of energy attacks at the heart.

"'Let'em have it'?" asked Guy.

"It was the best I could come up with…"

"You know, you had a little time to think about it."

"Don't you have something to do?"

"Ok, ok."

"Smartaleck...Tenchi! A-Ko! Kuno! Ukyou! We have incoming!"

Several creatures were being dropped around the room, most of them low level, but still there were about twenty of them. The four melee warriors were somewhat of a match for these new creatures, mostly consisting of goblins and black knights. Fortunately they were considerably weaker than their earlier counterparts. Several scouts and Mews threw in some fire support. Next thing anybody knew there was a huge explosion from the heart, violently throwing everybody against an opposite wall. After several seconds all the creatures stood up before the heroes, still reeling from being flung against the stone walls. Several flinched, but the creatures simply turned and began walking away. Confused, everyone slowly stood and watched as the creatures simply ignored them and just walked away.

"What's going on?" asked Moon.

"The dungeon heart is destroyed," replied Guy. "That means the Keeper is dead. With no Keeper, the monsters have nobody to follow, and thus they all return to wince they came."

"You've been waiting a long time to say that, haven't you?" asked Ayeka.

"You have no idea."

"So does that mean we won?" asked Sammy.

"Yeah, it does," replied Uranus.

"I don't know about you guys," said A-Ko, "but that seemed a little anticlimactic."

(B-D)

A/N – I apologize about the seven-month layover this story had. It was a lot harder then I thought to envision this medium scale battle and not lose anybody. That and I went through 2 jobs and found out I'm going to be a dad soon since the last chapter. The wife is quite happy. Anyway, I'm not going to let this story die. I hate it when I love a story it did dies in the middle of it. I'm going to see this through to the end. I'll admit, stuff is happening that even I didn't see coming, like in the next chapter. Don't worry, I'll be back on track this time. There's two more scheduled stops in the recruitment arch before we get to that war itself. I am still willing to entertain more ideas as to who can join the JLA. The qualifications for applicants are stated in my profile, and I do update my profile if things delay the story at all. Well, that's enough out of me for now. Next chapter kinda blindsides me, so this'll be interesting to watch…I mean type. See you next chapter.


	10. Dark Side of Recruitment

Disclaimer – There's a bunch of stuff in here now that I don't own, but at least I own something. Other than Guy and apparently the concept of dimensional clusters, I own not at a single character. Oh well, enjoy.

* * *

_**Dark Side of Recruitment**_

After an hour long hike back to the portals where they first met, the army of magical girls was disbanded. After checking her computer for the recruitment clues, Washu and company bid farewell to Tokyo Mew Mew, Card Captor Sakura, Pretty Sammy, Project A-Ko, and their friends and newly freed innocents. The JLA returned with Sailor Moon and the scouts to their world and made their way to the temple where Mars lived with their injured. The scouts reverted back to their normal selves before entering the temple so Rei could ask her uncle if they could stay the night.

"So, these are the ones you've been spending the day with, eh, Rei?"

"Um, yea. They're from out of town. They came over to visit Ami and…"

"Oh, ho, ho…don't worry about that. You're not the only one who was visited this week. I know what they were here for, and I know that you will be joining them."

"What?" exclaimed half the room as Washu feverishly started glancing around.

"So go ahead to the temple. I've already set things up for them. The boys can stay in the auxiliary room."

"…um…ok…" answered Rei.

"I've also talked to Ami's mom, too. She fought a bit, but she's ok with her going, too." Ami froze. "She wants you to come home with Washu so she can speak with the two of you. Heh heh. Judging by your faces, I guess I should let you get some rest. Rei, come and speak with me before the night is over, ok?"

"Um, sure, grandpa."

And with that grandpa left the room.

"Um, Washu…?" started Usagi.

"I only glanced at these clues earlier for the others that helped us earlier, but ruled them out because they were only one word clues. All three of them were pretty obvious now that I think about it."

"And why didn't you say something?" asked Minako.

"It wasn't the right time. I was going to tell you once we got here, but gramps here stole my thunder."

"Let's go over the clues later," said Usagi. "We need to let Makoto, Michiru, Setsuna, and Mamoru rest."

"Alright," Washu responded.

They all finally laid the torture victims on the bedding in the temple as Washu pulled out her laptop. After a few moments she looked up and met everyone's eyes.

"Well, it looks like we have three scouts coming with us," she said. "The clues are the names of three planets. Considering your alter egos, that would make sense. Of course we heard about Mercury and Mars. The third planet, though, is Saturn."

Haruka looked at Hotaru as she stiffened in realization.

"Me?"

"Considering your ability to heal it makes sense," said Guy as Minako put a band aid on one his many injuries. "We could definitely use a healer…"

"Maybe if you learned how to dodge," jabbed Ranma.

"Heh, I can," Guy dodged. "I'm just doing an experiment…albeit a really painful one."

"Whatever."

"Anyway," interrupted Washu, "we should all get some rest. Ami and I still have a stop to make before we can rest. Haruka, I know you've been through a lot today, and from what I understand you are Hotaru's guardian, but I ask you to please allow her to come with us. We'll keep her as safe as we can…"

"That's not the issue," she replied. "My question is…how do we know those clues are legit? You could've just typed those in just a few moments ago."

"Haruka," whispered Usagi.

"Where'd those 'clues' come from?"

"I think I told you already, we're on a mission from Kami-sama. We get most of our intel and our clues from Him."

"But…" Haruka started when Rei but her hand on her shoulder.

"Don't fight this. The angel already told us that some of us weren't going to remain here after this battle, but at least now we know that we have a chance to come back. We're not going on a suicide mission, just a dangerous one."

"And she won't be alone," joined Ami. "You can trust us to take care of her."

Hotaru slowly came up to Haruka and embraced her.

"Don't worry, dad. I'll be fine."

"Let her go," sounded a whisper behind them.

"Michiru!" exclaimed Haruka as she rushed to her side. "Don't move. You need to recover."

"I'll…be ok. Hotaru…should go…with them."

"Why?"

"She'll be with…good people."

"They risked their lives to save us," entered Usagi. "And the angel told us about them. I believe we can trust them."

Hotaru stood for a while, clinching both fists before answering.

"I…I need some time."

"There's no need to rush," said Washu. "We're not going to take her by force. Kami-sama Himself gave us these orders, but he does allow us to choose if we want to go or not."

"We had a choice?" perked up Ranma, earning him a double bop from Ukyou and Ryoko.

(B-D)

Ayeka stepped outside the temple for a breath of fresh air. She had to. She was royalty, a princess, not a nurse. After a few moments she saw Ami leave with Washu and sighed with relief. She sure had enough action for one day. Last thing she wanted to do was escort a child to get a relative permission slip to dimension hop. She reflected back on the past two days and yawned. She just then realized that they haven't had any sleep since they picked up those martial artists. Now would probably be a good time to get some badly needed beauty sleep. She had to look her best for Tenchi, after all.

"Princess."

She turned to see who had addressed her. A silhouette met her, leaning on the wall to the left of the temple entrance. It was that sword wielding boy that she could not quite recall his name.

"You seem distracted, your highness."

"No," she answered, trying to remember his name. "And you don't have to refer to me that formally."

"But you are a princess. It would be quite rude for even a noble such as myself to refer to you in any other way."

"That's very kind of you, but on this mission I would prefer if you simply called me Ayeka."

"Very well, Lady Ayeka."

"And may I ask what you're doing out here?"

"I know precious little of the ways of medicine, so I thought a moment of rest bit would be in order. That and I had requested of Washu that I may accompany her and the maiden Ami on their trip, but she refused. Thus, I remain here…although…"

"Although?"

"I have a bad feeling about letting our leader go out virtually unprotected. Indeed, I know that Ami is a warrior without a doubt, despite her outward appearance, but if something were to happen to either of them…"

"Do not worry about Washu. I've known her for years and there is very little that woman cannot handle."

"But the stakes are high!" he exclaimed as he stepped closer to her. "Think about it. She was appointed by Kami-sama Himself, and she must be under protection at all times."

"Washu is a big girl now, if you hadn't noticed," snided Ayeka.

"Indeed, that I cannot argue against, but she is still vital to this mission's success. If someone were to injure her…"

"We'd be stuck here…" realized Ayeka. "I guess it wouldn't hurt to go out for a stroll, don't you think?"

"Would you like an escort, my lady?"

"It would be rude to decline such a courteous offer. Shall we?"

"That we shall," replied Kuno as he took her by the arm.

The two upper-class persons left to follow Washu and Ami, but they were being watched by a character on top of the roof.

"Any idea where those two are going?"

"Myea."

"Yeah, neither do I, and I doubt it's for a midnight stroll, either, for her to be leaving Tenchi here. You stay here. I'm gonna see what the princess is doing."

"Not without me, sugar."

"Who the…? Ukyou?"

"You really are a lot stronger than you look, Ryoko. I've never seen Ranma-honey knocked out in one hit, so I ain't got nothin' to do for the moment."

"Guess his head's still soft from that last beating, eh?"

"Heh, yeah. Akane's stronger than she thinks. So how about it?"

"Myeh!"

"Ok, ok. I'll take her."

"You just want Tenchi all to yourself, don't you, sweetheart?"

"M…m…myeh!" Ryo-Ohki blushed.

"Wow, I've never seen a cat blush before…"

"Myeh!" she exclaimed as she leapt down through the roof.

"Hmm, not bad. It usually takes me a full minute before I can get her to blush like that."

"I've been paying attention."

"Heh heh...alright, let's go. I'm curious about how this whole 'Battle Spatula' thing works, anyway."

(B-D)

"…and those are the basic principles of the Mercury computer," finished Ami as she and Washu journeyed to her home. Ami had been particularly nervous when she found out that she would be joining the JLA, and even more so since it appeared that her mom knew that she was a scout. This nervousness was replaced with admiration as she was finally able to speak freely of her many observations to someone that could actually comprehend what she was saying.

"This is a fascinating device," mused Washu. "And you say you have no idea where the database is that this accesses?"

"I only have a few mentions from Luna and Artemis, but for the most part it's a mystery."

"I think I can find out for you once we're done here."

"That would be great, Miss…I mean, Washu."

"And a quick learner, too. I'm beginning to understand why you're coming with us, Ami. We need another intelligent viewpoint on this team…and an assistant." Ami just stared at Washu with starry eyes as she nodded yes with all her might. Washu could tell that this was going to be fun. "So, is this the place?" Ami snapped out of her happiness to realize that they had been standing in front of her house for several minutes, now. She glanced back at Washu and nodded yes, obviously nervous. She put her hand on the young one's shoulder and gave a reassuring squeeze. Ami took in a deep breathe. "We go at your pace. I'll just follow your lead or I can do all the talking..."

"No…I mean, no, don't worry about me. I think I can handle this."

"Believe me," said the older scientist, "it'll be even tougher for your mom, but if you're any indication, you and your mom'll be just fine."

"Thanks…we can go in, now…" as Ami steadied herself as she unlocked the door.

The door opened and the two were ambushed by the bouquet of aroma from the kitchen. Both ladies had to exert control over there drool reflex with some success. Ami's eye widened as she recognized the smells.

"Ami! Is that you, dear?"

"Ye…yes, mother!"

"Please, have a seat; I'll be out in a moment."

"OK!" She turned to Washu. "I don't believe it…"

"Believe it, Ami. You know that your mother loves you. It should only be a mild surprise that she would take off and, judging from the smell and your reaction, decided to make your favorite meal to see you off."

"I know..." Ami replied as she sat on the sofa. Washu relaxed for the first time in days in the easy chair.

"Just be strong. You'll know what to do."

(B-D)

Two shadows lurked between two houses across the street from Ami's house watching. They saw the two ladies enter the house. They glanced and nodded at each other, knowing what must be done. Blending with the shadows around them, they returned to a vacant lot on the next block. There they met with three other shadows seated around a campfire.

"How much longer till we get to fight?" asked female voice from the largest of the three by the fire.

"If you continue to ask that question you'll lose more than a mere fight." replied another female voice from a shorter shadow.

"Relax, you two," said the one male. "You guys just need to enjoy the break while we have it. Nobody's around so we don't have to hide right now, and our employer said that she'd show up in just a day or two if she survived those monsters we fought yesterday."

"She's here…" mentioned a shadow behind the other male.

"Hmm, she must be worthy of having five of us going after her to survive that. Xolazog. Xemuke."

"Yes, Diddoan" the twin shadows answered.

"Did you confirm that our target is there?"

"It is the target," the other shadow responded. "Her ally said her name and she matches the description."

"Good. Ryogy, looks like you'll get your chance to fight after all."

The large female leaned toward the fire to reveal a woman with short brownish hair and a pearly brown toothed smile. She had green and red war paint on her face. "Finally."

"Ch'talaith." The other female around the fire stood, now seen as wearing robes of some sort. "It's time."

(B-D)

"That was much more refreshing than I thought it would be," said Ayeka as she and Kuno sat on a bench near Ami's house.

"Indeed," Kuno replied. "Truly a pleasant change from home."

"Really? How is it different here than it is in…?"

"Nerima? The difference is grand, to be sure. People here live rather ordinary lives, bereft of martial arts battles every week, bothersome sisters and an actually full day without rain." Ayeka arched an eyebrow. "I swear, Ranma Saotome has indeed made life…interesting, to say the least. It is rare to have a moment of peace in my hometown."

"What in interesting place. I didn't get to see much while we were there, but if Ranma's curse is any indication…" Kuno raised an eyebrow. "…you…oh, I'm terribly sorry. I thought you knew."

"Ranma is cursed?" Kuno pondered. "I wonder what…"

"Pardon me, sir and ma'am," said a middle-aged lady wearing gray robes and a silvery belt, "but I seem to be lost. Would you be able to lead me to a nearby inn so that I may rest these weary bones?"

Kuno and Ayeka glanced at each other for a moment.

"I'm terribly sorry, miss," replied Ayeka, "but we're from out of town, also. We've no idea where most things are here."

"I see. Would you mind terribly if I join you for a moment."

"Please," stood Kuno, "you may have my seat."

"I don't believe that would be necessary," replied the woman as she brought up her hands and began to chant something under her breath. "WEB!"

"What?!"

A thick spider web appeared around them, surrounding limbs and waist, completely immobilizing the two.

"Do not worry," said the woman. "Since you were courteous I will spare you from the coming tragedy down this road."

"What tragedy?" asked Kuno as he struggled against the webbing.

"Simply an upcoming death, but do not worry. This will be done and I shall let you live without harm."

"You are an assassin?" demanded Kuno. Ayeka was just sitting in place, listening.

"It was not my first choice of profession, but when the Shadow Thieves help you, well, let just say that there are certain obligations. I know not what this…'Washu' has done to the order, but it will not matter in a moment."

"NO!" yelled Kuno. He struggled more, then stopped when he saw two shadowy figures cross the street for Ami's house. "You shall not get away with this. I, Tatewaki Kuno, the Blue Thunder of Furinkun High, do so swear."

"Tatewaki," said Ayeka now that she found out his name, "do you think you can get to those people in time to stop them?"

"If I were free, then yes."

"But you are completely immobile," said the woman. "How can you possibly break my spell?"

"I am Ayeka Musaki, princess of the Juri royal family, rulers of this galaxy. I do not need to move to break this web." About thirty cylindrical wooden probes materialized around her and Kuno, and after a bright flash of light, which also caught the attention of the lurking shadows in the area, the webbing disintegrated. "Go take care of the others. I'll handle this woman."

"By your leave," bowed Kuno before he sprinted off to Ami's.

The woman stared at Ayeka for a moment. "I must admit, I've never seen magic like that before."

"Ohohohhohoh, this isn't magic, madam. These are powers born naturally in my family. I will not let you kill Washu."

"Very well, Ayeka of Juri. Know now that you face Ch'talaith of Amn."

With that Ch'talaith began chanting again as Ayeka mentally raised her shield.

(B-D)

"Hold, shadows of darkness, for now you face Tatewaki Kuno, the Blue Thunder of Furikun High!" Lightning flashed behind him as he posed, sword pointed at the two now illuminated figures before him. Their covers blown, they stepped out into the light of the streetlight. They were dressed in mostly black with pouched belts around their waists and the female had a bandolier filled with daggers. The male had shoulder-length brown hair and pale green eyes glinting in the light. The female also had similar hair and matching eyes yet easy to distinguish from the other, if only while up close. "Give me your names so that the great Kami-sama Himself will know who I have defeated this day."

"Looks like we've been found, Xolazog," she said with a pretend sad face.

"Looks like it, Xemuke," he said with a smirk.

"How many victims have found us and lived to tell the story of the Twin Night Assassins?"

"About two, I think," Xolazog gestured by stroking his chin.

"And how many survived after they told?" Xemuke seemed to pout.

"None, sister."

"Do you think this boy will be the first?"

"Not at all."

Together they drew their katana blades from their backs and attacked as one with an overhead strike. Kuno blocked, surprising both as he blocked two katanas with a wooden bokken. He began to counter attack, taking advantage of their surprise. Ayeka was having problems of her own as she discovered that her shield was able to block everything Ch'talaith could throw at her except these "Magic Missiles". As much as she hated to do so, Ayeka had to go into close combat to keep her from chanting that spell, especially since they always seemed to hit her no matter how she dodged. They really hurt, too.

Meanwhile, across the street, two more figures remained in the shadows.

"Why do they get to fight?" asked the large woman.

"Because they got caught," Diddoan replied. "But since our stealth approach didn't work, it looks like we get to kill the target…unless you want to fight that boy, instead."

"He fights good. I will fight him."

"Then by all means, take over for the twins."

"Yea!"

Kuno had managed to fight the twins to a standstill, much to their surprise.

"How can he be blocking our blades with a practice sword?" exclaimed Xolazog, obviously frustrate that his Katana +3 seemed ineffective verses kendo.

"I don't know, Xemuke. Sir, what manner of sword is that?"

"My sword? This is simply my normal bokken. There is nothing special other then that it belongs to me."

The twins glanced at each other in confusion. A growl got all of their attention as the large woman arrived.

"You go get target. I get to fight now."

"Very good, Ryogy," said Xolazog. "We can handle the taryyaaaa!!!!!"

The Twins yelped as they were suddenly lifted into the air by a pair of arms from above. These arms tossed them behind a nearby bush, where three voices groaned in pain. Kuno and Ryogy looked up at the floating newcomer.

"You really should know better than to play hero by yourself, Kuno."

"Such a beauteous sight for mine eyes, Lady Ryoko."

"Nobody said anything about flying women!" yelled Xolazog.

"That's why they picked us, you idiots!" yelled Diddoan and they got to their feet. "We adapt. We're supposed to expect the unexpected."

_**SHING!**_

They stopped as a giant battle spatula halted their advance.

"You might wanna think real hard before you start more trouble, sugar."

"What the?" Diddoan mouthed as the twins glanced at him. "Ok, I'll be the first to admit it. How in Baal's name could we have expected this?"

"So now what?" asked Ukyou. "You guys wanna surrender now or is this gonna get rough?"

"Get rough!" exclaimed Ryogy as she brought her axe down on Kuno, who managed to dodge it. The twins sighed as they leapt and tackled Ryoko out of the sky while Diddoan drew a pair of short swords and faced Ukyou.

(B-D)

"And that's my theory."

"Guy? Why do you even talk?" said Minako.

"Yeah," Makoto added weakly. "There's no way all of our cuts are going to heal by morning."

"If you've played any role playing game, unless you had something cut off or were near death, one night at an inn and you were good as new again. Full hit points restored, and stuff."

"And you expect this to happen in real life?" asked Minako.

"I certainly hope so…ow, that hurts."

"I know," she said as she pressed hard to apply another bandage on his arm.

"You're mean," Guy smirked.

The girls giggled in the face of Guy's flirtation attack as Usagi looked on. She sighed as she returned her attention to Mamoru. He was burned and bruised, even after Hotaru had used her healing abilities on him. He still lay there, twitching occasionally and wincing in his sleep. Usagi did her best not to cry. This was by far the worst they've ever fared against an enemy. Even with help, the enemy literally almost tortured her friends to death. She had almost lost them several times before, but this was different. This wasn't an enemy from the past, but the present, one that only cared about how much suffering they could cause others. She tried to steady herself when a hand placed itself on her shoulder. Usagi, grateful for the comfort, relaxed a little and put her hand on top of the other. She paused, feeling that it was furry. She slowly turned her head to face the owner of the hand.

"Myea?" questioned a small girl-like creature with long white and brown hair.

"What the?!" exclaimed Usagi as she jumped. As she got a closer look, she saw that the small cat-girl before her had a sadness in her eyes. "Oh…um, were you worried about me?"

"Myea-huh" she nodded affirmatively.

Usagi giggled to herself, despite having no idea what this creature was. "I think I'm going to be alright. Where did you come from?"

"Myea!" she excitedly pointed toward Tenchi.

"Oh, you're with them, huh? How come I didn't see you before?"

"Myea?" she looked confused for a moment before understanding dawned on her face. "Myea, myea!"

POOF! 

The small cat-girl transformed into the cabbit she had seen with that floating girl before.

"Myea!"

"Oh, I get it. You can transform like I can." Ryo-Ohki nodded yes. "You're so cute," she said as she hugged her.

"Myea…mea?" Ryo-Ohki looked up as a drop landed on her head to find Usagi trying to hold back her tears. Ryo-Ohki stayed with her for a moment as the tears started to flow before wiggling out of her hug. Usagi looked at her confused as she transformed back into her child form and started to look inside her pockets for something. "Myea!" she exclaimed as she finally found what she was looking for. "Myea."

Usagi took the offered gift, not quite able to see what it was through her tears. It was rough in texture and orange. She wiped her tears to find that she had been given a carrot.

"Um…a carrot?"

"Myea." She responded sagely.

"Um, thanks?"

"Myea!" she returned as she patted Usagi on the head.

(B-D)

"I have to admit," said Ch'talaith, "this…um…"

"Okonomiyaki."

"Yes. This is quite good. I've never had anything like it."

"Me neither," said Ryogy as she snarfed down her third helping.

"Ukyou's okonomiyaki is indeed the best of all lands," said Kuno.

"Oh, stop," blushed Ukyou as she served up another set to the twins.

"Yes, it was rather nice of you all to come," said Washu.

"For food like this, how can I say no," replied Ryoko.

"And this is what Ami is to expect on this trip?" asked Dr. Mizuno.

"We're kinda getting the hang of it," said Washu. "I have to admit, I never thought anybody would try to assassinate me."

"Well, normally it's just a job," said Diddoan, "but this is the first time we've been offered a meal by our target that wasn't poisoned. What kind of magic is this, anyway?"

The five assassins were seated on the floor of the Mizuno residence surrounded by green bubbles, preventing them making any aggressive movement. They were, however, to be able to join the others for dinner.

"Oh, it's not magic," bragged Washu. "That's a little project I worked on a while back. You see, we don't use magic but highly advanced technology. To those that have never seen it before, though, there's very little difference between them."

"She has a point," said Ch'talaith. "I am interested in how this works."

"Yeah," added Xolazog. "I escape stuff like this as a hobby and I can't figure this thing out."

"I've tried myself," said Ayeka. "That bubble is quite resilient."

"No kidding," said Xemuke as she poked the bubble with her sharp finger nail.

"This is a bit absurd," said Dr. Mizuno. "These people were trying to kill you in front of my home, and now we're all eating okonomiyaki and sandwiches with them?"

"Well, I did say earlier that this wouldn't be easy, and that it would be dangerous, but you saw what happened out there. You're daughter's a very capable fighter with a good tactical mind. How else could she have helped the others defeat them?"

"Well, you did handle yourself pretty well out there."

"Thank you, mom."

"I doubt I would've believed that you were the famous Sailor Mercury if I hadn't seen it myself. And your new friends seem pretty loyal to each other."

"We're getting there," said Ukyou. "I never did like this guy much back at home, but seeing as it's his fault that we were all here to stop these guys…well, let's just say that he's really surprised me."

"From what's I've seen from how those two treat each other," said Washu, "that's very high praise." She turned back to Diddoan. "So, you still haven't answered my question."

"Ah, well. Ok. We don't hate you, it's just, you know, a job."

"What about the man who hired you?" asked Ami.

"Didn't meet him personally, just saw him from a distance…but as much as I like you guys, I can't really tell you much anyway."

"Understandable," nodded Washu. She stood and removed Ryogy's helmet. "Hey, Ryoko, think fast!" as hurled the helmet at her. Ryoko, not even slowing down on her okonomiyaki, caught it one handed and gripped it. She paused for a moment to see what was in her hand.

"But…bu…that was a magically reinforced +3 platemail helmet!" exclaimed Ch'talaith as Ryoko shrugged and tossed the crumpled helmet lightly back to Washu.

"Um, ok then," mumbled Diddoan. "He wore robes, darn colorful robes at that. Crazy hair style, too, even for Baldur's Gate. But his laugh…that's what really creeped me out. That's all I know about the guy."

"Well, thank you for not lying to me," said Washu.

"How can you tell that?" asked Ami.

"Those prison spheres monitor everything about their captives. I can read his heart rate and some other data. He actually shivered when he remembered that laugh."

"So what of the others?" asked Kuno. "What do you know of your employer?"

"Just our guild," said Xolazog. "We tend not to ask questions about this sort of thing."

"Ryogy just wants to fight," commented Xemuke, getting an enthusiastic nod from Ryogy.

"I never know who employs me," replied Ch'talaith. "I'm simply repaying a debt."

"And how did you all manage to come here from your world?" probed Washu.

"We were given two scrolls," said Ch'talaith, "each could only be used once."

"So that's what the Scroll of Interdimensional Travel is for?"

"How…? I see. Technology?" Washu nodded. "I've never seen a scroll like this, yet this man had two of these. Scrolls have magic imbued into them, but this is an entirely new kind of magic. We only have one left to get back home."

"Interesting…enabling interdimensional travel via a scroll…I can't wait to study this data. Well, I guess that's that," said Washu as she brought out her keyboard. She typed in a few commands and the prison bubbled faded, releasing the five assassins. They stood, looking at Washu with a confused look that matched those of her teammates. "I guess you can all go on home now."

"What the?" said Diddoan.

"Why did you free us…willingly?" questioned Xemuke.

"How do you know if we aren't going to try to kill you now?" asked Xolazog.

"Yeah. You are all free to go. You've given me some valuable information that will help me figure out what's going on. Besides, it's going to be kinda hard to kill me when I've already confiscated all of your weapons."

"WHAT!" the assassins yelled as they checked themselves over.

"Yep, even your hidden weapons."

"But…how?" asked Ch'talaith.

"Now that's my little secret. At least I'm letting you go with your scroll. I wanna study the magical properties of these weapons and the readings from your armor. Don't worry, I'll send them back." That got a few raised eyebrows. "It may be a bit complex to explain, but I'll get them back to you eventually. Now Kuno, if you would be so kind as to escort our guests out, we can finish what we're doing here."

"As you wish," answered Kuno as he stood. "Come."

After the assassins had left the house, everyone continued to stare at Washu.

"Probably wondering why I did that, huh?" Nods answered her. "We didn't need anything else from them, and they aren't going to attack me again. Besides, now we know something that explains a lot about what's been going on. I'll explain more at the temple, but now we know that there is someone behind these games invading our cluster. Now it seems like we have an enemy." She turns to Dr. Mizuno. "You see, we're figuring this out as we go along, but things are coming together. Ami would be a tremendous help on this mission. So, what do you say?"

Dr. Mizuno glanced at everyone in her home, at last looking at Ami. She saw the determined look in Ami's eyes, knowing full well what her daughter's decision was.

"If it's alright with you, Washu, I'll bring Ami to the temple tomorrow morning."

Washu released a sigh she didn't know she had held in. "Thank you. We'll take good care of your daughter."

(B-D)

The following morning found a flurry of activity as the girls were presented with a martial arts display unlike anything they had ever seen before. Kuno and Tenchi squared off in a sword fight that even Ranma was impressed by. Then Ranma and Guy sparred with each other in an impressive ground vs. air combat demonstration. Minako had never been more attracted to a boy or two in her life. Haruka was also impressed, now a little more comfortable with letting Hotaru go with them. She held Michiru closely, grateful for what had happened. Apparently Guy's lunatic theory was correct. Their bodies had completely healed overnight, but the psychological injuries didn't. She still felt her partner shivering, but she knew that they would be okay somehow.

"Heh, not too bad, Guy," smirked Ranma as Guy took a knee. "You're right up there with Ucchan."

"Huff…thanks. I'm glad I made it up to that class."

"Guess it's time we upped your game, then, huh?"

"How so?" Guy smirked.

"How 'bout by the time I'm done with you, you might make me sweat a little."

"Oh, you are SO asking for it, Ranma."

"Get yourselves together, guys," said Washu. "We're leaving in a few minutes."

"MINUTES!!" they yelled as they bolted to the bath.

"Heh, heh. I love doing that. You girls ready?"

"Yes," the three scouts answered.

"Now, it'll probably be best to stay in your normal forms until we need to transform, ok?"

"Makes sense," said Rei, now in light black jacket over her red shirt and a medium black length skirt.

"No problem," said Hotaru, wearing a comfortable black shirt with a matching skirt of her own.

"Our things are in your lab," reported Ami wearing a dark blue sweater with black slacks. "We're ready to go when you are."

"Not yet!" exclaimed a voice from the roof.

Everyone's attention went up as two cats leapt down to the ground.

"Luna!"

"Artemis!"

"Hello, scouts," said Luna, just now catching her breath. "I'm terribly sorry we're late."

"Wow, talking cats now," Ryoko.

"Myeh!"

"Ok, never mind."

"We had to go on a mission and we're just now getting back," said Artemis. "Is everyone alright?"

"Mostly," said Usagi. "Several of us were badly hurt, though."

"So we've heard," said Luna. She then looked at Washu. "So, you must be the ones we were told about."

"We've been getting that a lot," Washu replied. "My name is Washu, apparent leader of the Justice League of Animé. How can we be of service?"

"First of all," started Luna, "thank you for helping Usagi and the others with that horrendous battle the other day. We'd only heard about what happened once we got back."

"Not a problem, just glad we could help."

"But we also understand that you'll be taking three of our scouts with you," said Artemis.

"Seems like it."

"You seem fairly casual about all of this…" deadpanned Luna.

"Well, it helps to keep the nerves calm."

"Works for me."

"Oh be quiet, Artemis. Anyway, we've just returned from our mission to retrieve several artifacts that we were not aware even existed. We would've told everyone that we were going, but when an angel tells you to go now, you go."

"Completely understandable. They handled themselves pretty well under the circumstances."

"I'm glad to hear that. So, who are going with you on this mission of yours?" Rei, Ami, and Hotaru stepped forward. "Oh my, that's interesting, but things are starting to make sense, now."

"It sure does," said Artemis. "Girls, we have something for you. Hold out your transformation pens." They complied and held out their pens. The cats back flipped twice and three small single colored orbs appeared and floated to each of them. "Now, take the orb that matches your costume color and place it on the top of your pen."

Each scout took the blue, red, or black orb and placed it on their respective pen. The orbs melted onto the pens, causing the girls to instinctively drop them. The pens, however, decided not to fall but to float as the orbs melted and covered the entire pen. The pens then seemed to morph somehow into a circular shape, than streaked toward their respective owners, causing everyone else to gasp.

"What the?" said Ranma as he and Guy came out, hair still wet.

"Hey, cool," said Guy, "a power up!"

"A what?" asked Minako before all were blinded by the light emanating from the three girls. "What in the world?"

The light died down to reveal the three scouts transformed, but different. Each scout glowed in flowing gowns, colored in their respective colors and baring a remarkable resemblance to Queen Serenity. The gowns slowly changed again, this time into a semblance of their normal scout appearance. Their skirts were longer, each coming down to their knees. Their shirts were now long-sleeved and ornate with silver designs ancient in nature. Their shoes changed to some sort of silvery slippers with short heels and silver gloves covered their hands. They also seemed to have transparent angel wings, but no one could be certain.

"I am the Light Sailor Solder of Mars."

"I am the Light Sailor Solder of Mercury."

"I am the Light Sailor Solder of Saturn."

"In the name of Kami-sama, we shall bring peace to all creation!" the three posed.

A moment passes.

"That…" started Usagi, "was…so COOL!!!!"

"No doubt!" exclaimed Guy.

"What was that?" asked Ranma and Ryoko to themselves.

"I must admit, this is real invigorating," said Mercury.

"Yeah," said Mars. "I feel so much stronger than before."

"So do I," said Saturn.

"But…there's no record of this kind of transformation anywhere," said Luna.

"But it seems so natural," said Artemis.

"Even I haven't seen anything like this before," said Setsuna.

"Wow," said Haruka.

"Impressive," said Washu as she read the data on her screen. "Ami, let me see your computer."

"Sure." She said as a blue visor appeared over her eyes. "Amazing! It seems that our powers have almost doubled from our previous forms."

"Among other things," added Washu. "You mentally summoned that computer."

"I did?"

"Yep. Ryoko, Ranma. Did you two notice anything else?"

The two glanced at each other, seeming to confirm what they though.

"We couldn't move when they did their pose thing," said Ranma.

"We tried, but we were just frozen."

"The ability to hold everyone present still while posing…interesting upgrade."

"Let's power down," said Mars. The others nodded in agreement.

They each placed the hands over their hearts and a light glow surrounded them, and then faded along with their suits.

"Hotaru…" said Haruka. "Look at yourself."

"Huh?" she glanced at herself, now finding that she felt different. "What a minute, I know this feeling." She crouched as if to jump, then suddenly she leapt high towards the roof of the temple. All but the Nerimians were impressed by the show until she didn't quite make the roof. Ranma came to the rescue and caught her before she fell off the edge.

"Mmm, that confirms it," said Washu as everyone surrounded her. "I don't know what that stuff was, but each orb was specifically attuned to each scout. Now even when in the normal state they're at about half the strength of the old scout forms. In terms of strength I'd say you're at about the level of an Olympic level athlete. Not to mention that your health has vastly improved. This is a serious transformation upgrade."

"I wish we could get that, too," whined Usagi.

"Actually," said Luna, "these were the three that we were able to get on our own. We know of another four, but they were too dangerous for us to retrieve alone. That means that there should be an orb for each of you."

"If that's true, then that means that you guys are going to need these upgrade orbs if you're to defend this world until we complete our mission."

"You don't mean…" started Ami.

"Kami-sama said that we can only take a few warriors with us and the rest must remain to defend the realm. That means that there's a high likelihood of another attack."

"Then we'll have to be ready," said Usagi, startling everyone. "We won't let another enemy do what that Keeper did to our loved ones again." Even those untrained in the detection of battle auras could see her white aura blazing around her. "Luna, we need to know where these other orbs are so we can be ready."

"U…Usagi…" stumbled Rei.

"But first," Usagi said as she turned to her three friends, "we have to see our friends off. It may be a while before we see you guys again, but we will see each other again."

Rei fought the tears welling in her eyes. "Yeah, we'll be back."

"It'll be tough without you, Ami, but you will be missed."

"You guys will be ok."

"And Hotaru, don't show off too much." -

_giggle._ "I'll be good."

"Rei." The two girls stared at each other for a moment. "I'll take good care of your _World of Naru _mangas for you.

_**BONK!**_

"Oh no you…uh oh. USAGI!"

"WAAAAHHHHH!!!!!"

Washu laughed as she saw everybody trying to comfort Usagi. She had put up a good front, but that stronger than normal bop put a nice sized bump on the girl's head, almost adding a third meatball. Dismissing the thought, she glanced at the other JLA members. They were all ready to go.

"Ok, girls," said Washu. "It's time." Everyone nodded and Rei, Ami, and Hotaru took their place with their new team. "Now remember, we may appear anywhere, even in front of people, so try to act casual but be prepared for anything. Ready?" Nods of understanding. "Good. Good luck to you all. We'll take good care of your friends!"

"Bye!"

As everyone was waving goodbye to their friends, Washu pressed the button on her C.I.T. A large, circular portal swirling with a psychedelic mix of blue and white appeared, with the occasional flash of lightning. Never mind the gentle 20mph breeze.

"Um, is that lightning safe?" asked Ami, not expecting to be drowned out by the loud rumble emitted by the portal.

"OK, people," yelled Washu, again not hearing the question over the wind, "let's go."

The now eleven member team carefully walked through the portal. The girls' eyes strained as they oriented themselves amidst the swirling blue and white. Kuno's face remained stoic and still while Ranma continued the kata he was doing the last time he was here, still thinking that he looked cool doing so with the cool color scheme. Ukyou and Rei just stared about, admiring the scenery. Ami was amazed that she was visiting another dimension. Washu was watching the area carefully, as if expecting something. Hotaru began doing cartwheels around Ayeka and Tenchi, who just stood there, waiting.

_**POP!**_

The swirl of the portal disappeared and they found themselves in the middle of a large city. It was obviously night time and neon light surrounded them. Most were ready to see if anything would explode nearby. After a moment of normalcy they relaxed.

"Ok, now what?" asked Ranma.

"What is this place?" asked Hotaru.

"And what was that 'pop'?" asked Rei

"We're definitely in a major metropolis," said Ami, "and apparently in the future."

"What makes you say that?" asked Washu.

Ami showed her a newspaper on the sidewalk dated September 12, 2033.

"…must….resist…geeking….out…"

"Guy, if you don't behave yourself…" said Ukyou as she pulled out her spatula.

"But…Ami just pulled freaking a sci-fi classic!"

"Yeah, except this time we're actually IN the future!"

"Oh…right."

"You mean you watch that stuff, Ucchan?"

"Um..."

Conversation was interrupted but a squad of sleek police cars racing by escorting three large police trucks. Suddenly two armored mechanoids landed across the street from them. They had the same "ADP" markings as the vehicles that raced by a moment ago.

"Whoa!" exclaimed Guy.

"Mechanized battle hardsuits…not too shabby," appraised Washu. "But those ain't bad at all."

Everyone watched in shock as two other blue muscular mechanoids landed in front of the ADP mechs and the battle begin…or as it turned out, the slaughter. At least, that's how it started. Ayeka was ready to put up a shield while others were about to jump in but were stopped by Washu. Just as the two blue mechs were about to destroy the ADP mechs, a blur landed and kicked the back of each blue mech, drawing their attention. The blurs stopped, show two new, more slender mechs facing them.

"Who are those guys?" asked Rei.

"Don't know," said Ryoko. "What's up with the pink hardsuit?"

(B-D)

A/N – For those who don't know, things are about to get a little more chaotic. We're just a few chapters away from the end of the recruitment arc, and this story will be moving to a new section once again to show who will be joining next. If you haven't figured it out yet, I'm going old school with _Bubblegum Crisis_, and the next chapter will move this story to that section for a while after I update. I've never worked in a cyberpunk area before, but I'm going to do my best not to disappoint. Let me know how you like this story. Am I being too predictable? Do I seem to be rushing things? Not going fast enough? Please R&R so I can improve. Until then, I'll see you again next update.


	11. Big Trouble in Megatokyo

_**Big Trouble in Megatokyo

* * *

**_

The industrial park was dark and quiet, save for the roaming dogs and cats searching for food. Not many came by here anymore, as business was better elsewhere. A few brave souls did remain, managing a decent living for the times. One warehouse in particular was converted into a garage and auto repair shop that saw a good amount of business for its location. An older man was working on a car while his young worker was working on a motorcycle. The harmony of tools and mechanics was briefly interrupted but a scooter pulling up to the front. The two mechanics glanced at the newcomer for a moment, and then returned to work. The woman dismounted from her scooter and removed her helmet, revealing a full head of red hair coming down to her shoulders. She placed her helmet on the scooter and placed it off to the side.

"Hey, guys," said the redhead. "Is everybody here?"

"Yes," said the older man, "they're all downstairs waiting for you."

"Thanks, Doc!" she called as she jogged to the stairwell.

After navigating the halls beneath the garage, the redhead entered a room via a hidden door. Here computers ran diagnostics on various occurrences throughout the city among other things. She met up with the three other, taller women in the room.

"Bout time you got here, Nene," said the tall brunette. "How could you be late for a meeting you called?"

"It was hard getting off work, Priss. The AD Police are all working overtime right now, if you hadn't noticed."

"And that is the reason why we are here," said the other tall woman with short, dark blue hair as she gained everyone's attention. "As we all know, the boomers in the west district have all gone berserk. The cause of this is unknown, but we have a client that wants us to help the ADP stop them at all costs."

"They want us to help them?" exclaimed Priss. "What the hell? Let them do their own job."

Priss ignored the glare coming from Nene.

"I hate to say it, but we better be getting paid good for this." said the slightly shorter woman. She wore a red headband and had her short, black bangs hanging off to the right of her face.

"We will be paid $50 million for the job, Linna."

Linna and Priss literally hit the floor upon hearing this.

"$50 million!?! When do we suit up?"

"Hold on a minute," said Priss, putting her hands on her hips. "Who the heck is willing to put that kind of money up for something like this?"

"The Japanese government is our client. They want us to prevent as much property damage as possible."

"Ok, Sylia," said Priss, "so we take the job. How the hell are we supposed to stop a district full of boomers in one night?"

"ADP is fully mobilized right now," said Nene. "We can let them take the easy ones and we take on the tougher ones."

"My thoughts precisely," replied Sylia. "Since we are covering such a large area we must split up into two teams. Linna will go with me."

"WHAT?" yelled Priss and Nene.

"Why the…?"

"You are our best fighter, Priss, and Nene will be your support. You can handle that, can't you?"

Priss and Nene glanced at each other for a moment. Sure, they weren't the best of friends, but as sisters-in-arms they knew what the other was capable of. Priss was a fighter who cared nothing of the ways of computers save her hardsuit. Nene was an elite hacker who could barely hold her own in hand-to-hand combat.

"They make the perfect team," giggled Linna.

"Shut up, Linna," pouted Priss.

(B-D)

The park was peaceful and quiet. A light wind blew by as the overhead lamp flickered out. It was at that moment that a human figure. Humanoid would be the right word, actually. Its shoulders were broad, and appeared broader with its armor. It moved swiftly yet cautiously, glancing here and there as it performed its recon mission. This strange new world was swarming with these Terrans, yet most of them were non-combatants. The humanoid shook its head. No, they had learned the hard way. No matter how docile they appeared, every Terran was dangerous. It steeled itself and continued on its mission. Recon may not be that exciting, but they had to know the lay of the land in order to survive.

(B-D)

As they finally rested on the top of a ruined building, they looked around and gathered their surroundings. They had just destroyed an older model combat boomer that had been a city councilman's bodyguard. Elections for his replacement will take place next month. What confused the two Knight Sabers was the fact that several construction boomers and two landscaping boomers had also gone berserk at the same time. They had handled the combat boomer and the landscapers before the AD Police came and destroyed the construction boomers. The brunette sighed. It had bothered her once that there were boomers everywhere, but she didn't know to what extent they were integrated into society. She may not know much about computers, but she knew that it's never a good thing when everyone depends on a machine to build their lives.

"This is not good, Priss," said Nene as she finally caught her breath. She had been sitting on the ledge of the building looking down.

"What's wrong, squirt?" she asked as she walked up behind her. Priss would never admit it, but after seeing Nene beat a hacker boomer at its own game, her respect for Nene had increased dramatically.

"I was trying to get a reading on those boomers we just fought, but I couldn't get anything more than a passing scan. But look at this…"

Priss glanced at the holo-screen that came up from Nene's forearm guard and a wave chart came up. She tried in vain to translate in information.

"And this is important because…?"

"This signal here…" she pointed to a line, "is on the same wavelength as the boomers cerebral processors. The strength of this signal is way high, higher than anything we have at ADP."

"So what? Does that mean that someone's making all these boomers go crazy on purpose?"

"I don't know. This is the first time I've had a chance to do any scanning during a fight. If we can, next time there's a fight could you fight while I scan the area?"

"Hmmm. If it'll get this job done quicker, then fine by me. This has really been biting into my personal time, you know."

"Tell me about it…oh man…"

"What is it, Nene?"

"It's 7 o'clock. I'm gonna be late for work if we don't hurry back."

"Fine, let's go."

(B-D)

It had been days since they began this job, and yet the only lead into what was causing these boomer rampages was that strange signal the Nene had picked up earlier. Even after giving the ADP the data they had gathered, neither could find the source of it, but one thing was clear, it was spreading.

Sylia had to start rotating shifts for the others due to fatigue, lack of sleep, and other factors, like several people had started to notice that they were missing. She went over the data again. They had picked up the signal a few times, but were unable to follow it because of the rampaging boomers. It had been a week since this had begun, and she knew why the government nor Genom had not even attempted a recall or temporary shutdown of boomers yet. Money. No matter what seemed to happen, it always came down to one of two things, money, or power. The problem had gotten to the point to where the ADP were out on 20 hour days and the citywide curfew was set at 8 p.m. People were beginning to fear leaving their homes. She rubbed her temples before sipping on her tea. Things actually seemed to slow down today, so tonight would be a good time to take the night off. She needed it. Her team needed it. Yes, after a good night's rest they'd be able to renew their efforts and figure out how to track the source of that signal.

(B-D)

"Well, it could've been worse, guys," said Nene through her helmet radio to her fellow Sabers, "this could've happened last night."

"This is the first time they waited till after our night off," said Linna, "but did they have to make up for it by blowing up the whole city?"

"This is the worst that it has ever been," said Sylia. "Boomers all over the city have gone berserk in the last three hours."

"ADP is fully mobilized," reported Nene, "but they can only cover so much."

"That's what we're here for," grinned Priss, now ready for action.

"We all know the plan," said Sylia. "Watch for the signal. It should be everywhere. We have to find its source."

"Ok, we got it, let's get out there and do this."

"Ever the eager one, Priss," sighed Linna.

"Mackey, prepare to deploy."

"Roger, sis!"

The modified APC rolled out onto the street and raised its two armored doors allowing two mechanical arms to deploy. Held by each arm was a Knight Saber, each on a supped up motorcycle. The two other Knight Sabers stood on top of the APC. As soon as the arms released the bikes, the bike Sabers raced off into the night as the other two leapt to the rooftops.

The battles were not very difficult, even tedious, but the sheer number of boomers was wearing them down. The fact that boomers of random assortments were destroying everything around them, even themselves, made the situation even more dangerous. Fortunately most people had already gone indoors, but at times boomers would go into the buildings to destroy, causing mass hysteria and panicking. As Sylia and Linna raced through the streets desperately searching for that signal they saw much of the devastation. There were fires burning out of control in the distance and they could hear the screams of frightened crowds over their engines and through their helmets. The two glanced at each other. This was going to be a long night.

(B-D)

"There it is!" yelled Nene, almost deafening Priss as she step back from the roof's edge.

"What, you found it?"

"Yes. It's moving, though, and fast…whoa!"

"Did you just read some kind of power spike, there, Nene?"

"Yeah, how did you…oh…" she stopped as she saw what Priss had been looking at. There wasn't a cloud in the sky, but it appeared that lightning was striking a localized area about a half mile from them. "We gotta stop that."

"You better believe it. Let's go…and radio your boyfriend while you're at it."

"He's not…oooooo, I'm so gonna get you."

Priss laughed as she and Nene leapt to find the cause of that lightning. After a few buildings Priss stopped. Nene almost overstepped but managed to stop.

"What is it?"

"There's a squad going after something."

"After what?"

"Don't know. I thought I saw…I don't know, but it was moving fast."

Nene checked her scanner. "And that thing's sending out the signal! Let's go!"

At that they gave chase to the ADP pursuit squad and their quarry as fast as they could, but the previous fights had worn them out a bit. They couldn't move as fast to catch them and were slowly losing them. They paused on the top of a small shop to catch their breath.

"Priss, Nene, come in."

"We're here."

"Linna and I will pursue the signal. You two save those ADPs three blocks south of you. They're facing two combat boomers."

"Whew, I'll take that over running…hey, wait a…"

"We're on it. Priss out."

"Priss!"

"Hey, we weren't gonna catch those guys, anyway, but we can at least take a breather after we save your buddies, right?"

That hit a sore spot.

"I am so going to get you for this."

(B-D)

They knew they had to act. They figured that they had a moment to rest before those combat boomers overpowered the two K-11 units, but they were even more worn out than the Sabers were. Not only that, but there were innocent people nearby. If they didn't do something quick, those people would be killed. They didn't even need to glance at each other to know what their next course of action was to be. The moment they left an opening…THERE!

Just as the two combat boomers were about to destroy the K-11 units, a blur landed and kicked the back of each boomer, drawing their attention. The blurs stopped, show two new, more slender hardsuits facing them.

"Who are those guys?" asked the girl with long, dark hair in the group.

"Don't know, but what's up with the pink hardsuit?" replied the teal haired woman.

"It's not pink, it's light red!"

"Focus…"

"Sorry."

The boomers stepped menacingly toward the Knight Sabers, prompting them to leap over them. Fortunately these were older BU-12B, so the massive upgrades the Knight Sabers had done to their own hardsuits were more than a match for them. Priss landed one hand on top of the boomer's head as she leapt over it and impaled it with a thin, long spike through its' head and body, causing it to collapse in a heap before exploding. The other boomer turned around to strike at Nene, but paused when it didn't see her land. It looked up, seeing her hovering above it. She waved and pointed to its left. It didn't look, thus it didn't see the exploding roundhouse kick to the face coming from Priss. Now that its head no longer existed, the body fell back, landing hard on the concrete. They glanced at their most recent triumph, high-fiving each other, then turned to see if the ADP officers were okay. Much to their surprise, the teal haired woman from earlier was kneeling next to a younger girl who seemed to be tending one of the officers. The other was unconscious but alive. The Knight Sabers watched in awe as the girl's hands glowed for a moment and the officer coughed up some blood.

"Hey, what're you…" started Priss. "What the?"

The officer slowly placed his hand on the girl's shoulder. "You must be an angel…thank you…" and the officer blacked out.

"Is he…?" asked Nene.

"He'll be alright," replied the girl. "Ryoko got him out of that thing just in time."

"But…whoa, how the?" Priss examined the K-11 Combat Armor. The chest plate had been torn off and other parts carefully pulled apart so the officer could be taken out. "How?"

"Wow," said Nene as she had her armor start recording everything around them. "How in the world did you do that?"

"Um…" Ryoko started when an explosion rocked the next district over.

"Dang," spat Priss. "Those boomers are still going crazy. Look, people, you better get some shelter while you can before any more boomers show up."

"What's a boomer?" asked the boy with short black hair.

"What's a…you gotta be kidding me, right?...Right?"

"Look," interjected Nene, "just go and find some cover. There's…robots going crazy all over the city. If you stay out here you may be killed."

"Let's go."

"Right."

The Knight Sabers leapt up to the top of the roof and away from the strange group of bystanders. The group watched as they left.

"Um, should we go follow them?" asked Ranma.

"No," replied Washu. "There seems to be a lot going on here…and judging from this battle I'd say things are pretty darn intense. Good thing I got a nice scan of their armor before they went off so I can find them later…I hope. We don't know how things work here yet and it looks like we need some info before we help out here…I wonder."

Washu walked up to one of the fallen boomers and began poking it with a stick.

"What are you doing?" asked Ukyo.

"Figuring something out. These 'Knight Sabers' seem to be spread out and obviously the law enforcement is in dire need of help. Ryoko, I'd like you to go around and find out what's causing all this damage."

"No problem. Come on, Ryo-Ohki."

"No, she stays with me."

"Fine, take the fun out of it."

"Remember, I doubt this world's had a public first contact yet, so they wouldn't be used to seeing an alien flying around. Be careful, ok."

"Yes, mom…" Ryoko sighed as she teleported out.

"The rest of us are going to our mobile base until we can see how we can help this city. Boys, I need you to pick up that 'boomer' for me."

"No prob," said Guy as the four men approached the boomer. "Wait…mobile base?" the three other guys shrugged.

"Um, Washu," said Ayeka.

"Yes?"

"What's a Knight Saber?"

"Apparently those two women in the hardsuits."

"But how do…?"

"The pink one left a sort of calling card on the ground there."

Most looked to see the signature of "Knight Sabers" burned into the ground by a low powered laser.

"Heh, cute," said Ukyo.

"So what do we do?" asked Rei.

"We get to go swimming."

"What?"

(B-D)

"Wooooooow!" exclaimed Hotaru and Uyko as they stared out the view port.

"Are…are you sure this is…um…safe?" asked a frightened Ranma.

"Ryo-Ohki is a formidable spaceship capable of some very impressive feats," calmed Ayeka. "Floating under the Tokyo Bay is a small thing."

"But...but…"

"Here, Ranma," said Washu as she handed him a drink, "take this."

Ranma took the glass of red liquid and examined it. "What's this?"

"It'll calm your nerves a little. Try it."

Ranma examined the glass again, then cautiously took a sip.

"Hey, taste like fruit punch."

"It is fruit punch."

"Oh, ok then. _Gulp!_"

"Now, could you go over to that seat and relax a little? Your nervousness is affecting Hotaru."

"She looks fine…" grumbled Ranma as he sulked off.

"What was that all about?" asked Ayeka.

"Guess you forgot. He's afraid of cats, now he's inside one. Think it'll be a good idea to let him out every once in a while?"

"What is he, a dog now?"

"Didn't expect that from you, Ayeka."

"Nor did I."

The sound of a throat clearing got their attention. They turned to find Kuno standing before them with Rei by his side.

"So, what do we get to do?" asked Rei.

"Indeed, with the city in such peril it would seem to be a waste to just stand by and only allow Ryoko to join the battle."

"If these were human beings there wouldn't be a problem," stated Washu, "but these are robots we're dealing with. Would you be able to cut armor alloy with your sword? Or melt it with your fire? Okay, we don't know about your fire, yet, but with so many unknowns, I didn't want to risk your lives like that."

"While you logic is sound, the desire to fight still burns."

"I don't like it either, people, but it can't be helped." Washu paused for a moment to collect herself. "Look, I wanted to help those people, too, but we can't…"

"What if we don't fight those boomer things?" asked Rei.

_**sigh**_. "We're heroes. We fight evil. If one of those things shows up, how can you NOT fight it? Ryoko is the strongest one of us, and I know for a fact that she can handle whatever is out there…just trust me on that one, 'k? That plus I'll be able to find out how to handle those things without killing ourselves. Besides, we need to do some research and I have to create a few things so we can actually help without anybody getting lost."

"But Ryoga's not here," mumbled the still sulking Ranma, not noticing Ukyo approaching.

"Shut up, you. Anyway, just have some patience. I know it's tough, but believe me; we'll make up for it. I got Ami learning about this world as we speak."

"Well that makes me feel better," said Rei.

"Perhaps now may be a good time to speak with Tenchi of his swordsmanship…"

"Take you time, guys," said Washu as she left the small gathering. She stopped by Guy to check on him. "How're you doing?"

"Man, I can't believe how stupid I've been."

"How so?"

"Half the stuff I've done so far was so against the _Gamer's Guide to Interdimensional Travel_. I forgot most of this stuff."

"That's why I have you going over it again. I can't be the only one who knows interdimensional etiquette."

"Yeah, I gathered that. I'm not THAT stupid."

"Don't sell yourself short, Guy. If it weren't for you, we wouldn't have a clue of what we were up against."

"I guess."

"Just get yourself into that guide. You can only improve from here, right?"

"Yeah, I guess you have a point."

Washu patted Guy on the shoulder and began to make her way to her laboratory. Looking around, she had to sit down for a moment. What had she done? She had done the unthinkable, the unfathomable. She had actually managed to not come into her lab for over four days. The urge to tinker rose within her as she noticed that her hands were trembling. Another hand placed itself on her shoulder, startling her as she nearly jumped out of her skin.

"Tea?"

"Oh, thanks, Ami…where'd you come from?"

"I've been in here researching this world, just like you asked."

"Geez, I really must've been out of it."

"Is everything alright, Washu-sama?"

"No, I'm ok. I just haven't been in here for so long, now…guess I was just letting myself space out for a moment. I'm fine, now." Washu stands up, determination returning to her eyes. "Alright, time to work on those communicators!"

Ami watched her mentor march further into the lab, laughing maniacally as she went. She knew Washu was hiding something, but now was not the time to probe. She turned back to her console to renew her research of this fascinating world. So much technology and advances that she had barely imagined lay before her on the computer screen. She soon lost herself in her work, just like she had always dreamed of, like a true researcher of alternate worlds.

(B-D)

"You have got to be kidding me," said the non-believing Linna. "How is that even physically possible?"

"Hey, I was there, and she's got pictures. I've never seen anyone with grip strength like that before."

"Priss, normally I would be hard pressed to believe something like this," said Sylia, "but due to recent events this does not seem too far out of the ordinary."

"Not far out of the ordinary?" asked Nene. "This girl literally pealed open a K-11 carefully enough not to hurt Sgt. Gallagher with her bare hands. That's just freaky."

"That, along with that being we had lost earlier indicates that there is something far more then a simple boomer uprising. Something major is going to happen soon, and we must be ready…_yawn…_"

"Wow, we must really need some rest if Sylia is yawning," quipped Priss.

"I'm all for that," said Linna.

"Me, too."

"Very well. We shall try to take it easy for now until we can get another lead on the signal."

The Knight Sabers nodded in agreement as they fought with the sandman. Eventually they all collapsed in the spare room beneath the building to rest. Fortunately they had prepared for the nights that they would be too tired to get home safely. They would sleep well, tonight.

(B-D)

A/N: Wow, to take this long and have like, half a normal chapter, but I have to admit, I'm kinda happy with this one. Tried a slightly different way of describing things and telling the story, so I hope you like it. I'm working on Chp 12 already as things are finally starting to flow again. I'm hoping that with my new work schedule next week I'll be able to do more on this then I have been. I also need some ideas Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this. I'll be back with another update hopefully sooner than this time. (B-D)


	12. First Contact, Again

Disclaimer: Man, I haven't been covering my back lately. I don't own these guys, nobody from Ranma, Tenchi, Sailor Moon, Bubblegum Crisis, or the AD Police. I do own Guy, though. Don't take him. He's all I've got.

* * *

_**First Contact…again**_

Two days had passed without incident after what most people soon called "The Boomer Revolt" and life seemed to be returning back to normal. Washu had developed a communicator for everyone that resembled a ring and they were finally able to leave Ryo-Ohki. Ami, Guy, and Washu remained as everyone else went out to "scout the area", but they all knew what they were really going to do. Ukyo finally got a chance to walk the town with a nerve-wrecked Ranma…he had been in the belly of that "cat ship" for almost two days, now…Ryoko and Ayeka escorted Tenchi on a walk to the downtown area, while Kuno accompanied Rei and Hotaru as they checked out the shopping district. Finally, they had a chance to relax a little.

The Knight Sabers also enjoyed their break…well, at least most of them did. Nene was busy at work as most of the on duty police were gratefully sent home for a day off. She, along with the other paper pushers of the AD Police, had the pleasant task of handling the resulting paperwork of the Boomer Revolt. Needless to say, there was much agony and gnashing of teeth. Priss was not seen for almost 36 hours since she had completely crashed and burned in bed. Fighting and running almost non-stop for several days had taken its toll on the not too young woman. At the very least there was much snoring and grinding of teeth. Linna had gone out to reunite with some of her friends that had called checking to see if she was ok. Happiness and joy were found where ever they went this day. Sylia had opened up shop once again and the ladies were all too happy to make up for lost time shopping. Finally, life had returned to normal.

The couple had been walking around rather aimlessly as they journeyed toward some unknown destination. They stared awestruck as they tried to absorb this huge city of lights and stone. This was very different from the home that they had left behind only days before. Most buildings seemed worse for wear, and they were surprised to see that people were still living in them. From this they deduced that roof hopping might not be a good idea in this area, but she didn't mind too much. She was just glad to get some relatively fresh air. Of course, that quick rain shower that hit them ten minutes ago didn't help her mood much.

"Stupid rain…" mumbled the pouting redhead. "I thought that stuff only happened at home."

"Yeah, go figure," replied her taller girl friend, "but who would've thought that it'd follow us to different worlds?"

"Don't know, and right now I don't care, Ucchan. I just wanna be outta that cat ship and get a good workout."

"Yeah, like that other stuff we've been doing wasn't a workout."

"Nah, they were tough an' all, but they didn't have any real skill…guess I'm kinda spoiled."

"So, the mighty Ranchan finally admits it."

Ranma-chan just growled as they continued walking through a park. There they found a remarkable sight. It appeared to be some sort of science fair in the park as several child-sized mechs were using electricity to apparently vaporize a large crystal structure. Ukyo and Ranma-chan stood with mouths agape at the technological wonder that was before them. Not quite the 'ooo, shiny' type of agape, but more of a 'wow, that's so cool' type of thing. Time seemed to no longer exist as they watched these golden 'mini-mechs' as Ukyo called them break down the crystal and disperse into the woods. When the last one disappeared from view, they were able to regain their composure.

"Whoa, that was cool," said Ranma-chan.

"Yeah it was," answered Ukyo. "This future has a lot of stuff that we don't have."

"Of course, it's the future. I'd bet that if they didn't blow up the city like Ami said happened here, there'd be flyin' cars all over the place."

"I don't think we're THAT far in the future, Ranchan."

"Eh, whatever."

(B-D)

"Hey, have you heard?"

"Heard about what?"

"Linna, you've really been out of the loop. There's been these crystals popping up all over the city. People've been trying to get their hands on them to sell online but the government has been barricading them saying that they're radioactive and stuff."

"You're kidding!"

"No. My boyfriend almost got some, but then there was gunfire and he barely got outta there."

"Whoa, gunfire?" exclaimed Linna. She hadn't had a chance to just relax with the girls in ages. As the conversation progressed, however, she began to realize that there was something else going on with these crystals that she had to tell Sylia about. They hadn't been called in for a while, now, but this needed to be looked into.

(B-D)

"And why must we visit _this_ establishment?"

"Because they have great music from what I can hear."

"Tenchi, please tell…Tenchi?"

"Ayeka!" called Tenchi as he was being dragged down the stairs into the bar called _Down Under_.

Ayeka followed Tenchi and Ryoko into the bar and found herself assaulted by a wall of light and sound. There were many people dancing and cheering the rock band on and an impressive bar to her right. After a few minutes she was finally able to locate her two companions just as the band had finished their set.

"Yeaaaa!!!!!"

"They were pretty good."

"I did not know that you were into that kind of thing, Tenchi."

"Oh, Ayeka…yeah. I used to listen to this a little when I was younger, but this is new. I've never been to a place like this before."

"I'm sure I know who has, however," as she glared at the still cheering Ryoko.

"Wow, we only heard a little of their music, but that just rocked! Oh, hey, Ayeka. Glad you could make it."

"I'm sure."

"Hey, barkeep! Gimme two of your best!"

As the three strangers finally began to relax and enjoy themselves a woman paused on her way to the restroom. Teal hair? No question about it. She walked up to the barkeeper and told him to keep them there until she got back. Being good friends he was happy to oblige. The woman than went backstage so she could finish their last set.

(B-D)

"I don't know," said the barely teenaged girl. "That's a little old for us, isn't it?"

"We won't buy anything, Hotaru; we're just seeing what's going to be cool in the future."

"Although I know precious little of this type of thing, it does appear too…risqué at the least for maidens such as yourselves."

"Ah, just wait for us here, Kuno," smirked Rei and she dragged Hotaru behind her, "we won't be long."

The girls entered the lingerie shop and browsed what was there. As they giggled and took mental notes a woman approached them.

"Good afternoon, ladies," greeted the woman.

"Good afternoon, ma'am," returned the girls.

"Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Um…I don't think so," replied Rei. "We're just looking."

"That's alright," the woman replied, "just don't get too far ahead of yourself." Rei blushed away from the winking woman as Hotaru stifled her laughter. "Here, let me show you a few ideas for later."

"Thanks."

The girls enjoyed their time inside the store as Kuno waited patiently outside. A gentleman would not be found in such a place unless he was shopping for a gift, but he knew of no such person that would wear anything in there…except maybe…

"Pig-tailed girl!" exclaimed Kuno as he hugged his true love.

"What are you doing here?"

"My love, I had no idea that I would meet you here. How…?"

"Excuse me," interrupted a tall man wearing a dark suit, "but you three will have to leave the area."

"Why's that?" asked Ukyo.

"There's a radioactive hazard nearby and we have to clear the area."

"But Rei and Hotaru are still inside…"

"It's alright," said the woman from behind Kuno. "Sir, what seems…oh, hello, Nathan."

"Oh, Sylia, how are you?"

"I'm fine. What is going on?"

"We have to evacuate this area. There's a radiation hazard near here and the police are investigating. I'm afraid you'll have to close up for the day."

"I see. Very well. Do you all have anywhere you would like to go?"

"Um…" mumbled Ranma-chan.

"We're kinda new to this city," said Rei.

"I see. Would you mind if I gave you a quick tour after I close up?"

"Really?" exclaimed Hotaru.

"We don't want to bother you…" started Ukyo.

"No, it'll be fine. Nathan, would it be alright if these children" almost everyone present twitched "wait for me here while I close up?"

"I don't see a problem with that."

"Thank you. Would any of you like to help me?"

"Sure," said Hotaru.

"Um…"

"Ranchan, it's that or stay here with Kuno."

"Tough call," she mumbled.

(B-D)

Classic. Absolutely classic. It wasn't often that the regulars had such a spectacle to watch. One of their own, well known at the _Down Under_, was one of the best drinkers they knew, but this girl was really keeping up. At first her two friends had tried to say no, but when she made that move on the boy, things really heated up. They knew she was messing around, but these guys didn't.

"You're pretty gud at thish…" said the champion.

"You not bad…um…ah…youself, Prish," replied the challenged.

"That's Prissh!" Priss corrected.

"Ready"

"You butt I yam."

"GO!"

Priss and Ryoko each took three triple shots of some mix of vodka, Jack Daniels, and "other drink", but neither of them could really tell at the moment as they each took down their glasses one after the other. On the last one they pounded the table with their glasses, barely managing not to break them, and stared at each other. The crowd went nuts.

"So, any idea when they're going to stop?"

"None at all, Tenchi, but this Priss person is certainly holding her own against Ryoko."

"You gonn dow, Pr…P…Prissh!"

"Not ill you go firss, Rykoki!"

The barkeeper was enjoying the show, and saw that Priss was near her end. He decided that enough was enough before someone died of alcohol poisoning.

"Excuse me, sir," said the barkeeper with a somewhat southern accent.

"Yes?"

"Are you this lady's friend?"

"Yes sir."

"Ok, I'll give them one more drink, but then I'll have to cut 'em off, ok?"

"Thank you, sir."

"Heh, no problem, son. Ok, ladies, final round. Let's see who survives this special mix." The crowd cheers as a full sixteen ounce glass is placed before each of them. They contained a clear, odorless liquid. They each glanced at the barkeeper with the same question in their barely open eyes. "It's a special drink, saved up for just this occasion. If this doesn't knock you out, nothing will."

They grinned madly as they locked eyes...or at least tried to. After a few attempts they managed to grab their glass and at the urging of the crowd downed all sixteen ounces of mystery. Pounding the glasses once again they stared at one another.

"We…well…done…Prish."

"Tha…that Prish…."

All further communication ceased as both heads literally hit the table with a pleasing thud. The crowd roared in satisfaction and several offers to take one or both of the ladies home were refused by the barkeeper. Tenchi and Ayeka walked up once the crowd had dispersed to pick up their friend.

"I gotta admit, son, your friend is one hellofa drinker."

"You have no idea," mumbled Ayeka.

"So, sir…"

"Name's Joe, son."

"Yes, um, Joe? What was in that last glass?"

"Oh, that? Just a little some'm I put together for the real heavy drinkers. It's called water." Tenchi and Ayeka face-faulted. "With a dissolved knockout pill. Had to stop them two from drinking each other to death, y'know…I hope it's not much of a bother, but can I ask you a favor?"

"Sure."

"Hey, Joe."

"'Scuse me a sec…Hey, Nene. Off work early I see."

"Yeah…what happened to Priss?"

"She got herself into a drinkin' contest with these folks' friend over here."

"What the…" she started as she saw Ryoko. Looks like Priss found and unsuccessfully tried to drink some information out of their mystery strong woman. Tenchi approached Nene and bowed.

"We're sorry for our friend's behavior."

"Heheheh, don't worry about it. Joe, are any of her band mates still here?"

"Nope. They all left once they knew she started drinkin' again."

"Great. Now I have to figure out how to get her home…"

"Ayeka?"

"Why, Tenchi?"

"We are partly responsible…"

"Are you saying that you'll help me?"

"If it's alright with my friend here…"

"I suppose it will be fine, but I am _not_ carrying Ryoko."

"Don't worry about them, Nene. These are good kids."

"Heheh, thanks, Joe." She turned to Tenchi and bowed. "I appreciate your help."

(B-D)

"What do you mean blocked off?" exclaimed Linna. She stood about a block away from Sylia's storefront, but the whole area was cordoned off by barricades and police

"I'm sorry, miss, but this area is closed."

"Great, now how am I going to see Sylia?"

"Oh, so you're a friend of Sylia?" asked a new person.

"Oh, Leon?"

"Hey, Linna. Long time, no see."

"I know. So, what's going on here?"

"That's the weird thing. There's these crystal things popping up all over the place."

"I heard. When did this start up?"

"We think sometime during the revolt. The government thinks they're radioactive, but we're pretty sure it isn't. Anyway, I gotta go, but I'll see you around."

"Thanks, Leon. I'll tell Priss you said 'Hi.'"

"You do that."

Linna waved Leon off and was about to leave when she saw a glint at her feet. She picked up the object to find that it was a small, bluish, cylindrical crystal. She quickly put it in her pocket. "Thanks, Leon," she whispered as she left for the garage.

(B-D)

"So that's how it happened…"

"That's how it happened."

Nene sat in her chair as Tenchi and Ayeka sat on the other side of the table while Priss and Ryoko were laid out on the couch. Ayeka sipped on some tea as Tenchi explained how the two women managed to pass out.

"Does this happen much with her?"

"It's all she does back at home," commented Ayeka between sips. "She hardly helps around the house, she just eats, drinks, and drinks some more."

"Wow, that's a lot of drinking. No wonder she matched Priss. She has the highest alcohol tolerance of anybody I know. So, tell me…where are you guys from?"

Ayeka nearly choked on her tea as Tenchi tensed a little before answering. "We, um…we live out in the country."

"Wow, that's interesting," said Nene. "We don't have many people here from the country anymore."

"Yeah, we live in the Masaki Shrine…it's kinda remote, so you may not have heard about it."

"So, you live in a shrine with two attractive women in a remote country, eh? I'll just warn you, I'm a member of the AD Police…"

"Oh, no!" exclaimed Tenchi as he and Ayeka went beet red. "It's not like that at all…"

"Of course it isn't like that!" Ayeka nearly screamed. "Tenchi is my brother, and Ryoko is…a very distant cousin…"

"Ok, ok, I was just joking," laughed Nene.

Ayeka calmed herself as the danger seemed to pass. If Nene were to find out that they didn't belong in this world, and she was a member of the law enforcement here, that would be big trouble for them. She thought it best to change the subject.

"So tell me, Nene. You know a lot about what happens in this city, is that right?"

"Yes Ayeka. I don't work out in the field too often, but I get to see all the paperwork from most of the major events that happen here. Why?"

"When we arrived there were a lot of things going on at the time…the 'Boomer Revolt' as I hear some people calling it?"

"Yeah, we were pretty worn out from that night."

"I'm just curious. Do all of your police use those battle suits?"

"Oh, the hardsuits? No, just us. We're a special unit that handles the big stuff like combat boomers or, like you saw, the revolt."

"Well, we saw two of these…boomers, and they were beaten by these two other 'hardsuits' as you call them, but they were different from the police hardsuits that you mentioned."

"Oh, well…" murmured Nene as now it was her turn to be nervous.

"Can you tell me about these Knight Sabers?"

Nene glanced away as she tried to think of a way to explain things. Priss and Ryoko remained completely out, murmuring things about sake and motorcycles.

(B-D)

She had seen too much in her life, things that would normally traumatize a hardened soldier for life, but today she could hardly believe what she was seeing. They had found street carnival and thought it would be fun for these kids to try out some games. She had recognized them from the recording Nene had gathered, but she had no idea what they were capable of. If she didn't know any better, she would've thought that they were boomers, and that was still a possibility from what she was seeing. The short redhead had completely and casually dominated the ring toss game. Rei seemed to be a master at throwing darts at the balloons game, but the big surprise was when Hotaru, the smallest and she thought most frail of them broke the bell from the top of the Test Your Strength game. She had spent $40 on games and they had won well over $150 in prizes. They looked bored after a while so she took them over to a park where Ukyo pulled out a grill from nowhere and started cooking some sort of dish. Sylia took what she just remembered was an okonomiyaki and took a bite. The world outside seemed to no longer exist as she tasted the food again for the first time. It was indeed rare when her cool composure cracked for even a moment, but this was not the time of impassiveness. Never before had food like this ever graced her mouth, and the various organs of her digestive track rejoiced. For the first time in a long while, she felt content.

(B-D)

"Man, what a day," seated Linna as she examined the crystal under the garage. "This is usually Sylia's or Nene's job. Any luck, Mackey?"

"Wow, I'd say this was cool if it weren't so frightening."

"Huh?"

"This is something that normally isn't found anywhere on Earth. It's a completely new element from what I can see."

"That's…not normal."

"Definitely not normal," replied Mackey.

"Not for this planet, anyway."

"What the!" the two yelled as two figures faded in across the room from them. They remained plastered against the wall as the figures finished forming into two women, one younger one with blue hair and an older one with red hair.

"Sorry to frighten you, but would you happen to be the Knight Sabers?" said the redhead.

"Wh…why…why do you want to know?" stammered Linna as she tried to take a fighting stance.

"Because I understand that you're the heroes of this world and thought we could help."

"Help?"

"Yep. My name's Washu and this is my assistant, Ami. We've been studying what's been going and we think we can help you pinpoint this signal of yours."

"How did…" started Linna. "Wait a minute. How the hell did you two get in here?"

"I told you we should have come in through the main entrance," said Ami.

Washu shrugged. "Oh well, I guess this is a bit sudden. Here, I'll leave this disk here for you to examine and if you'd like to meet just email us at the address on the disk." She paused for a moment as she studied the two humans across the room. "Don't worry about us. We're goodguys, too. We'll help when you need it. Ami?"

"Oh, yes."

Ami pressed a button on her wrist and the two faded out in an instant. Linna and Mackey just stared at the space that was occupied for a moment before Mackey moved himself to the awaiting disk.

"Um, that just happened, didn't it?" he asked.

"Uh, yeah…I think so. What in the world is going on, here?"

(B-D)

"But how did they find us, Linna?"

"I don't know, Nene. They just appeared out of nowhere and gave us this disk."

"Great, we have berserking boomers, mysterious signals, weird crystals, and now some Star Trek wannabes showing up. Sylia, what are we going to do about this?"

"Have some okonomiyaki to calm your nerves."

Linna and Nene stared at the goofily smiling Sylia in the corner and several take home boxes of okonomiyaki stacked up next to her. They glanced at each other for a moment.

"I think Sylia's gone bye-bye. What do you have for us, Linna?"

"You've been watching those classics movies again, haven't you?"

"Remember, I have Priss and that strong lady at my apartment passed out on my couch and that lady's two friends staying there. They didn't seem to know anything about any media from the last forty years or so."

"Didn't you say they were from the country or something?"

"Yeah, but this 'Masaki Shrine' that they said they lived is owned by a Tenchi Masaki."

"So their story checks out, then."

"That Tenchi is over seventy years old and a grandfather of 45 kids, with nobody named after him."

"Oh, I see. Think they're related to that 'Achoo' person?"

"Most likely," said Sylia, finally joining the conversation. She was still smiling, but had finally regained most of her coherent thought processes. "Those teens that I spent the afternoon with have some extraordinary abilities as well. Nene, would you bring up that recording of that group of people that you saved during the revolt?"

"Sure."

She brought up the picture of that night and realization dawned on the three of them. They had encounter the vast majority of this group today, and three of them were in Nene's apartment alone with a passed-out Priss.

(B-D)

Tenchi and Ayeka sat on the couch watching TV. Priss and Ryoko had been asleep for several hours now, but Ayeka was quite happy with how things turned out. Ryoko was out of commission and she was spending some serious quality time with Tenchi. Her head rested on Tenchi's lap while his left hand rested on her shoulder as his right hand absentmindedly stroked her dark purple hair. Life was bliss.

_**Ring!**_

They were startled when the phone rang. They looked at each other, only now realizing what they were doing. They blushed for a second, but only for that long.

_**Ring!**_

Now they were looking at the phone, debating with themselves if they should answer or not.

_**Ring!**_

"Hello?" Tenchi and Ayeka blinked as Ryoko answered the phone. "Who?...Priss…oh, yeah, her. Hold on. Hey, Priss!"

"What?"

"Phone for you," she called as she put the phone on the table.

Priss staggered to the phone and picked it up.

"Yeah, what is it?...yeah…really? Yeah, we're still here, just don't talk too loud, 'k? I still got a little hangover thing goin'...Yeah, they're watching some classic movie…Spiderman 3 I think…yeah, I know it's old…oh, yeah, about that, thanks for…oh…you want what?...but…they what?...ok, I want the full story later, then…no prob. I'll call if anything comes up…later." Priss hung up the phone and plopped herself onto a chair at the table. "Oh, hey guys."

Tenchi and Ayeka blinked at Priss.

"How long were you…?" started Tenchi.

"I think about an hour after that other girl left," said Ryoko as she dug into Nene's fridge.

"Ryoko!" chided Ayeka.

"Hey, Ryoko, toss me one, will ya'?"

She tossed her a cold beer as she joined her with another and some chips.

"Compai!" they exclaimed as the toasted their friendship.

"Don't tell me you guys are still going at," sighed Ayeka.

"Why?" asked Priss.

"Yeah, it's not often that you meet a kindred spirit, right?"

"Ya' got that right, sister."

"What in the…?" whispered Tenchi. "There's two of them?"

(B-D)

Night had finally come and the Knight Sabers were reunited in battle as boomers began to go crazy go nuts once again. It wasn't as bad as the revolt, but it was still really bad. The ADP were able to handle things much better now that they had some rest, so the Sabers were mostly handling the heavier boomers, yet something seemed different. It was similar to the previous revolt, but occasionally when they arrived at the scene, the boomers had already been destroyed. This puzzled the Knight Sabers as some boomers had what looked like sword wounds while others seemed to have been burned. They glanced at each other as they continued on their patrol, knowing what the others were thinking…what were those people?

(B-D)

"So, are you sure that you, Ranma, and Ami did this right?" asked Washu.

"I'm pretty sure, Washu, although I'd hate to run into Ami in a dark ally of RTS gaming, but yeah, these are good," said Guy in front of a console inside Ryo-Ohki

"Ok Guy, then explain this to me, 'cause I'm not quite getting the arrangement, here."

"Ok, we named the teams after the scouts, and each was designed so that they can cover each other's weaknesses. Team Mercury consists of…they don't have to worry about their identities in alternate dimensions, but do we have to…"

"Yes, they asked us to refer to them by their scout names during battle."

"Ok…Team Mercury consists of Mercury, Kuno, and Tenchi. Mercury provides cover for the melee attackers to get in close with their Tenchi sword and that +5 Katana that you got from those Baldur's Gate assassins and gave Kuno. We were lucky that that thing can cut boomer alloy, you know."

"That's why we tested that before sending them out. Ok, what about Team Mars?"

"That team has Mars, Ukyo, and Ayeka…"

"Interesting combination…"

"Yeah, Mars' offense is second only by Ryoko and Saturn, so she's the big gun, there. Ukyo runs interference while Ayeka provides cover fire and shielding."

"Hmm, not bad."

"Now we had a good debate about Team Saturn, something about all our eggs in one basket or something, but we have Saturn, Ranma, and Ryoko here. They have about twice the area to cover as the other teams, but they're also the fastest. Ranma is the scout, runs interference, and gets the innocents out of the way. Ryoko and Saturn…well, our two most powerful members can allegedly destroy planets, but I'm sure that they can show some restraint."

"I'm sure."

"Thanks to our satellite view here, it's almost like I'm playing MechCommander or something."

"What?"

"Nevermind. They're doing a good job out there. The Knight Sabers show up from time to time but our guys are gone before they get there. Man, I wish we could coordinate with them."

"Don't worry about it, Guy. We'll communicate better with…hey, what's that?"

"What's what? Oh…whoa…"

On the monitor they could see a red dot indicating that Ryo-Ohki had found a source of the signal that the Knight Sabers had been looking for. They could not get a clear view of them from the smoke rising from Megatokyo, however, but the signal was clear.

"That what we were waiting for, boss?"

"Sure is, Guy. Have all teams converge now…and if you can, send this to the Knight Sabers, too."

"Heh…if I can…I just hope they have someone at their base monitoring email…"

(B-D)

"Alright, ladies," said Nene, "we got something, here."

"What is it?" asked Linna.

"I got a strong reading from the junkyard…wow, that's strong…too strong."

"Too strong?" asked Priss.

"Yeah. I think there's more than one, there."

"Then we'd best hurry," said Sylia.

The others nodded and leapt off of the rooftop.

(B-D)

"Well that's new, but why is it always purple?"

Mars and Ayeka glanced at Ukyo's choice of words as they were the first to reach the junkyard. These things were large, easily twice the height of a normal human adult. They were spider-like, with four legs each, with gold armor and purple highlights on the joints and center pod-like object. They moved with mechanical precision as if they were searching for something.

"Mars to base, we have three…things here. I have no idea what they are, but they're big and spider-like."

"And purple."

"Um, yeah, and Ukyo says it's purple…"

Guy and Washu glanced at each other, knowing exactly what they had finally encountered.

"Team Mars, stand-by for the others to arrive," Guy said with a grin. "The game is about to begin."

(B-D)

A/N – Wow, this chapter came out of nowhere. Not sure where some of this stuff came from, but for some reason I reeeeeaaaallllly wanted to do that Priss vs. Ryoko scene, there. I hope you all enjoyed this. I know I did.

There is one thing that I need help with, however. I had an idea of where the JLA would go next, but I'm about to scrap it. If the JLA makes it through this, where should they go next? Who else should join? I'll have about 3 slots left before the recruitment arch is complete and we can move on to the Great War. I'll check out your ideas and that should spark some good stuff for the story. Until next chapter.


	13. We Get Signal!

* * *

It took a record five minutes to get to the junkyard, but considering the chaos that was going on throughout the city, they made excellent time. He still even had most of his squad with him. He wondered why this kind of thing only happens on his watch. Granted, sometimes it happens on his partner's shift, but usually he's the one to get it to the chin, and this looked like no exception. They had finally locked onto the signal that the Knight Sabers had informed them about last week and were on their way to intercept. Fortunately most of the rampaging boomers had apparently either self destructed or destroyed each other. Either way meant that there were fewer lives lost tonight, and once they take out the source of this signal, these revolts would end. As soon as he saw what was in the junkyard, however, he had everyone stop. Everyone in his unit stared at the three walking things inside.

"Ok, looks like we found…something."

"Something, sir? What the hell was that?"

"Right. Get out the K-13s."

"Hey, Leon."

"What?"

"They're already out here."

Leon turned around to see the four armored hardsuits already deployed from the armored truck.

"Ok then. Everyone, nothing gets in or out…hmm, except the Knight Sabers. They probably know more about what's going on than we do." Several officers laughed as they set up a perimeter around the junkyard. "Hey, Biggs! Wedge! Miller! You guys are with me."

The AD Police specialists were prepped and ready to move in their advanced battle hardsuits. The K-13 was a major upgrade from the now old K-12 battle armor that the military had lent them. It was just starting to get phased out of the military and since Megatokyo was such a Mecca for…well, mecha chaos, the ADP were the first to get a few suits. Leon's unit had four of the seven suits now used by the ADP, and they had performed magnificently once they figured out how to use them. The four armored officers entered the junkyard ready for anything.

"So what if this is our first contact with aliens, Leon?" asked Miller.

"Let's hope not, Bob. If they are and I'm the representative for the human race, we're in deep $#!+"

"No kidding," quipped Biggs.

"Better him than you, Biggs," said Wedge.

"But seriously," said Bob Miller, "if they start shooting big blue balls of energy at us, I'm gonna freak."

Biggs and Wedge grinned at each other.

"Heh, blue…"

"Alright, guys, get ready."

The others nodded and advanced further into the junkyard. Suddenly the three spider things moved into view from around the corner and paused. Leon stepped forward.

"Hello there. We, um…we come in peace?"

Bob grimaced as Biggs and Wedge began to snicker. This stopped when one of the spider things replied.

"_Peace?_" sounded a baritone, slightly echoed, otherworldly voice._ "You Terrans know nothing of peace_."

"Whoa…you speak Japanese?"

"_No, Terran, we do not. We speak to you telepathically, and the only reason we have not destroyed you yet is because we have a mission to complete_."

"…I…see…and what is your mission?"

"_We have no need to tell you, Terran, but know this. If you continue to interfere with us, our response with be swift and complete_."

And with that, the three creatures turned and left, but stopped once again when Leon called out to them.

"Could it have something to do with these crystals?"

Their sensors instantly recognized it.

"_Where did you get that?_"

"They've been popping up all over the place. Mind telling me what this is about."

"_Foolish Terran_…"

"_Hold, brother,_" said the other creature. "_What do you want from us?_"

"A chance to talk, maybe?"

"_Beware!_" exclaimed the third creature. "_Ambush!_"

"What?"

"_For Adun!"_

Several people came crawling out of the piles of junk surrounding them and began to attack. The ADP braced themselves when the creatures began firing large blue balls of plasma.

"Ok, guys, freaking out, here!" yelled Bob as he began to level his weapon at the people coming at them.

"Where'd these people come from?" yelled Wedge.

"What a minute…" said Leon as one of the creatures blasted a woman from the top of a car. He saw the skin flayed off and metal revealed beneath. "Good grief, they're boomers!"

"_These Terrans have again ambushed us."_

"_Then they shall feel our wrath!"_

Team Mars was standing on a large pile of junk watching this scene unfold when three others arrived.

"Whoa, what's going on?" asked Ranma.

"Welcome back," said Mars.

"Where'd all those people come from?" asked Ryoko.

"Those are not people, Ryoko," said Ayeka. "We've found that many boomers actually look like humans, but they are robots underneath."

"That's kinda sick, ain't it?" asked Ranma.

"That's ain't the only thing goin' on, honey," said Ukyo. "Those things can't tell the difference between boomers and people."

"That's not…"started Mars before the junk she was standing on began to rise. Only her instincts born from battle enabled her to jump away from the forming mound before a pair of hands could grab her.

"Man, they're everywhere!" yelled Ranma as he began to distract a 'male' boomer as many others rose from everywhere.

"Yeah," said Ryoko as she impaled another with her light sword. "But why are…OOFFF!!!!"

Three boomers of varying degrees of disrepair leapt and tackled Ryoko out of the air and the four of them landed on top of one of the creatures…or, at least they almost did. They bounced off of the air about four feet above the creature, with a blue pulse revealing a shield around it. The creature paused and turned toward the piled mess of Ryoko and her boomers.

"_En taro Adun!_"

"Oh crud..."

(B-D)

"Did he just say Adun?"

"I think so, Guy."

"And…dang it! Think, Hyabusa, think! Four-legged spider things…shooting blue energy balls…Adun…this is the game that's invading this world! I can't place it, but I know it's another strategy game...wait a minute…oh my God it's the freaking PROTOSS!"

"Protoss?"

"One of three races in the game Starcraft, only one of the best RTS games ever. Those are dragoons down there…ranged attackers, but the Protoss have shielding that protects them. Holy cow, man, I never thought we'd go up against them!"

"You done geeking out yet?"

"Heh, yeah, sorry. It's not often that I come across gaming icons in real life."

"No problem. Looks like Team Mercury showed up."

"Good. Alright, people, no matter what, we have to try to calm them…why is there a huge dome-like explosion thing in the center of the battlefield?"

(B-D)

A nasty combo is how Guy would later describe what had happened here. Several different situations merged violently into one huge explosion worthy of any animé of mass destruction. Ryoko, former scourge of her galaxy, was pinned down by three boomers and staring a Protoss dragoon right in its' relative face. Ten feet away Biggs and Wedge had been bashed aside by the second dragoon's leg towards her. The Knight Sabers had just arrived and, not even having time to assess what was going on, sprang into action to save the ADP K-13's. Priss fired three spikes at the second dragoon and somehow penetrated its' shield, hitting two vital areas including its' cooling system. Saturn, seeing Ryoko in serious trouble and forgetting that she had been powered up, used her Silence Glaive attack to save her. Ryoko was also unleashing a major attack to disable the first dragoon and get the boomers off of her. A split second later, two of the three boomers pinning Ryoko down had spontaneously decided to self-destruct at the same time that the second dragoon, unaware that it had been hit, tried to fire at them, thus critically overloading its' reactor. This moment of chaos happened over the course of three seconds. Needless to say, nobody had a chance to react.

"NNNOOOO!!!!!" yelled Leon before he, battle armor and all, was thrown back from the explosion.

"Ryoko!" yelled Tenchi as Ranma and Kuno barely managed to hold him back. It took Mars, Ukyo, and Mercury to hold back Ayeka as Saturn managed to erect a barrier to protect them.

All of the boomers in the area, the police outside of the junkyard, as well everything within two mile diameter was hit with a massive EMP pulse, shorting out every unshielded electronic device. The Knight Sabers were heavily shielded, and thus were unaffected, as were the K-13 that Leon still managed to pilot while Miller had been knocked out by the explosion. As for Biggs and Wedge…they were caught in the middle of the explosion with Ryoko and two of the dragoons. The shockwave that accompanied the EMP pulse, however, knocked everybody down and nearly flattened the area. That damage was contained somewhat, however, as a barrier surrounding the junkyard was produced by a quick-thinking Ryo-Ohki, who managed to block most of the concussive force but missing the EMP. The resulting confusion allowed the remaining dragoon to escape without notice. As the combatants slowly began to recover, they congregated to opposite ends of the now mostly flat area, guard high, searching for any sign of the enemy. They found them.

"What did they do to Biggs and Wedge?" seethed Leon as the Knight Sabers gathered around him.

"Ryoko…" strained Tenchi as he crawled to where her body should have been.

"Oh my…" gasped Guy as he, Washu, and a tired Ryo-Ohki walked out.

"Oh man, Ryoko!" yelled Ranma as he found a hand sticking out of the ground.

Tenchi and Saturn were quickly by his side as they tried to pull her free, but it was the leverage of Ukyo's Battle Spatula of Cookery +1, as Washu called it after she upgraded it, that they were then able to free her from her grave. She was bruised, bloodied, and not breathing. Saturn immediately began to try to heal her as Tenchi, Ayeka, Ukyo, and Washu watched on.

About fifty feet away Leon was on his mech's knees next to the remains of the K-13s the Biggs and Wedge had piloted. Linna had already checked on Miller and found that we would live. Priss put her hand on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry…"

"They were my friends…" said Leon. "I don't let many people close to me, but these two…what did those people do to them?"

"I don't know," said Priss. "I thought they were on our side."

"I don't think…" started Nene.

"WHO ARE YOU PEOPLE?" yelled Leon, getting everyone's attention.

"We're friends," responded Guy. "We're trying…"

"YOU KILLED MY FRIENDS!"

"We what?"

Leon took a menacing step forward with weapon raised, prompting everyone else to be on guard. "Why?"

"But…" stumbled Guy as he couldn't find any words.

"Listen, you!" yelled Ukyo. "We got hit by that blast, too, ya' know."

"All the better to…" started Leon he raised his weapon when suddenly there was a strong gust of wind, blowing dust into everyone's faces. A figure appeared in the dust cloud, causing every trigger-happy attack to set off instinctually, with all attacks concentrated on the still unknown figure that was now slightly obscured by several large explosions. Washu was the first to realize what was happening.

"WHOA! WHOA! WHOA! CEASE FIRE, PEOPLE!"

Everyone stopped suddenly when Washu's yelling brought them all back to their senses as they realized that they had fired on an unknown target. All eyes stared into the smoke as it refused to clear. The figure, now somewhat humanoid in shape, stepped out of the smoke, only now unfolding its four angelic wings.

"Holy sh…"

"You might want to stop there, Priss," said Linna.

The being wore blue chain mail armor that fit loosely on him, and a large bronze-like war hammer strapped to his side that seemed like it had a thin layer of flame surrounding it, yet neither burning him nor his armor. His skin shone with a silver luster and his short hair was like platinum.

"It's him…" whispered Rei.

"Who is that?" marveled Ranma.

"That's the angel that told me about you guys," she answered.

"Did she say an angel?" asked Nene.

The angel picked a long, thin spike that had wedged itself between the rings of his armor and studied it for a moment.

"Priss, isn't that yours?" asked Leon.

"Yeah…after all that and he's not even scratched…"

The angel dropped the spike and walked toward the body of Ryoko and took a knee.

"Your time has not yet come to pass. Rise, Ryoko."

He took Ryoko by the hand and helped her stand, amazing everyone, especially Ryoko.

"How am I…whoa?"

"Peace be upon you all, for I come with a message from Kami-sama."

"From…you're kidding, right?" exclaimed Priss.

"Peace, warrior, for your fight is not with me. You must join together to stop the Protoss from causing great harm to this world and themselves. You must convince them that you are not their enemy, for their goal is simply to go home. Do this, and this dimension will be safe. Fail, and an enemy even more dangerous shall appear that will consume all. Take heart and have faith, for He is with you."

Then, with one beat of his wings, the angel rocketed into the sky, clearing away the dust on the ground and creating a hole in the clouds above. Silence reigned as everyone tried to regain their wits. Finally, someone spoke.

"What was that?" asked Sylia.

"That, my friend, is our guardian angel," answered Washu, "apparently."

Linna walked up to Ryoko and lightly poked her on the arm.

"How are you alive after that?"

"Donno," she shrugged.

"Okay..." said Leon, "So now what?"

"Let's see," said Washu, "we have two choices. One, we could go back to what we were just about to do and try to kill each other or two, we can do what the messenger of Kami-sama says and work together to stop the Protoss from destroying everything that we all hold dear."

"Wow, tough choice," deadpanned Nene.

(B-D)

"Are you sure this was a good idea?" asked Nene, now no longer in her hardsuit.

"Don't worry," said Linna. "He already knew about me and Priss."

"I have to admit, though, I never would've thought that you were a Knight Saber."

"Shut up, Leon," pouted Nene.

"Ha, ha. So, you done freaking out yet, Bob?"

"Not quite," said Bob and Guy as they continued to stare at each other.

"They look almost exactly alike, don't they?" asked Ayeka.

"So, you must be my dimensional counterpart," observed Guy.

"You're from another dimension?" asked Bob. "Ha! I knew they existed. Hi, I'm Bob Miller of the AD Police Special Forces."

"Um, yeah, I'm Guy Bogard Hyabusa of the Old School Fighting Gamer's School of Martial Arts…well, actually, that's my call name."

"You're what?" asked Ranma.

"A nickname, an alter ego, if you will."

"Oh," understood Ukyo, "like Ranko."

"Who?"

"Don't ask, Guy," mumbled Ranma.

"Ah, I see. Anyway, my real name is…Bob Miller." Several people began to snicker as Guy glared at the offenders.

"I guess for the sake of simplicity, we should keep calling you 'Guy'," suggested Bob.

"Sounds good to me."

"Heh, heh…Bob," snickered Ranma.

"Don't make me go there, Ranma!" yelled Guy.

"Everyone, please calm down," said Ami as she came up from the basement. "Washu and Sylia have found something."

"I'll get you later."

"Bring it, 'Bob.'"

Everyone made their way to the bottom floor of the Knight Saber HQ, also known as Doc's Garage, and crowded into the main control room.

"Sorry about the crowding, people," apologized Washu, "but I doubt you guys were planning on hosting so many people at once."

"It is quite alright, Washu," returned Sylia. "Would you care to tell them?"

"Thank you. From what we've been able to learn from the samples of the dragoons from the junkyard we've found that these Protoss…"

"PROTOSS!" yelled Bob.

"Relax, Bob," said Guy. "I'll explain later."

"As I was saying…the Protoss have been here for a good while longer than we have, which explains why it's only now that we could trace them like we found our previous enemies. They're located just outside of Megatokyo."

"It is an abandoned part of the old Nerima district," continued Sylia.

"WHAT?" yelled Ranma, Ukyo, and Kuno.

"…"

"Our apologies, Ms. Sylia," said Kuno as he glanced at Ranma and Ukyo. "Please, continue."

"Thank you. This place has been uninhabited for the past thirty years, so it would be the perfect place to establish a base of some kind without detection. Thanks to Washu we were able to find them. We have also learned that the signal that we've been following for the past two weeks is their communications frequency, which is the real cause of the boomer revolts. Whenever they communicate with anything, it damages the cerebral circuits of the boomers, causing catastrophic damage to their logic circuits."

"In other words, those things think and that makes the boomers go crazy, right?" stated Leon.

"Essentially, yes," replied Washu. "And this is the case for any boomer within their telepathic range."

"Which explains why they think all humans are hostile," said Bob. "If the boomers they've met thus far looked like humans, they would consider all humans as threats."

"And I guess it's safe to say that they wouldn't bother scanning them to see if there was any differences, would they?" asked Priss.

"The Protoss, as far as the game Starcraft goes, establish who the enemy is and attack or defend themselves according to their experiences," said Guy. "They probably would've tried scanning, but it wouldn't be within their experience to do so. If they look like humans, or Terrans as they know us, and we attacked them, then we're just one more enemy on the map to completely wipe out."

"Um…" mumbled Nene as she raised her hand.

"We're not in school, Nene," quipped Leon, earning a glare from her.

"Yes, Nene?" said Sylia.

"I understand that we have aliens attacking us and this whole situation seems to be one big misunderstanding. As far fetched as it sounds, I can understand this. What I don't get is…what is this 'Starcraft' thing?"

Guy glanced at Washu, who nodded and pointed to herself.

"As you may have guessed, we're not from around here."

"No $#!+, Sherlock," said Priss.

"Um…right," tripped Washu. "Anyway, we've actually come from a different dimension in an attempt to stop a war from destroying everything, and so far every dimension we've visited had been invaded by some sort of computer game." Washu paused as the Knight Sabers and Leon tried to absorb this revelation. "Yes, we didn't expect it either, but we are really fighting video games in real life."

"That would explain the Protoss," said Bob.

"I think you're the only one of us getting all this," said Leon.

"Look, I can take in a lot of strange stuff. That's part of the reason why I joined the ADP, but if I didn't see those dragoons with my own eyes I never would've believed it. These guys must be from the recent past because they keep referring to the classic game of Starcraft. We're up to Starcraft X now, the sixth installment of the now legendary series," Bob glanced at Guy. "Don't ask about the missing numbers, it's a spoiler. Anyway, with this as a reference, I now understand what these blue crystals are about. To them, they're resources to build their army. They aren't radioactive, fortunately, but if they harvest enough, they could have a force large enough to conquer all of Japan and even the world if they tried."

"If they don't have to worry about the unit limit," stated Guy.

"Oh, you mean they behave like they do in the game?"

"Yeah."

"Yikes…they did away with the unit limit a while ago."

"Eww, that's a problem…now we don't know which set of rules they're using."

"Are you two done?" asked Washu, hands on her hips.

"Sorry," apologized the gamers.

"Good, although that does give us some idea of what we're up against, it would be best if we had some sort of distraction. Guy, Bob, you two are going to help us coordinate our infiltration of their base. Sylia, I'm guessing that you're with us, here?"

"The Knight Sabers will be ready."

"Thank you…alright, everybody, we're going to have to get some rest so we can do this…"

"Do we really have to go back to the cat ship?" asked Ranma.

"Well, yeah, unless somebody here wouldn't mind having a guest over for the night."

"I wouldn't mind," said Bob.

"Guess I'll join them, too," said Guy, "if that's alright with you."

"Go ahead," replied Washu.

(B-D)

Rei and Hotaru stood there glancing at each other inside the now transformed Ryo-Ohki. Never before had they ever seen such a scene. They had heard of them, but they had never seen it before. They were red, hot, and actually visible, and they knew that they should leave them alone. They glanced at each other one last time before leaving to join Ami. Surely she would be safer to hang out with then Ayeka and Ukyo after the guys decided to have a "boys' night out" the night before the big battle. After seeing such massive battle auras, they made sure that they wouldn't make these two angry at them.

(B-D)

"It's a shame that Ami couldn't be here," said Washu as she studied Sylia's hardsuit. "She'd love this."

"I'm surprised that you can understand my designs," said Sylia.

"So am I," said Nene. "I'm pretty smart but even I had a tough time figuring these out."

"Yes, but I'm a scientist and inventor. I live this stuff. No offence, but I'm used to more hi-tech stuff, but I love upgrading classic hardware."

Sylia and Nene glanced at each other. Their hardsuits were the envy of every military organization on the planet, and this person was calling is 'classic hardware?'

"Um, classic hardware?" asked Nene.

"Yeah, I'm used to building…well, hmm, how to explain this. Guess it's best to show you. You two know that I'm from another dimension, right?"

"I believe that we are still finding that hard to believe," answered Sylia.

"Well prepare for overload, my friends," grinned Washu as her transparent laptop appeared. "This is about to get a lot more crazy…and I'm not even going to mention Ranma...you might want to bring that other guy Mackey in here."

(B-D)

A/N – Man, this has been fun so far…and I do plan on finishing this, but I need your help in deciding which animé or manga that the JLA will be going to, next. DBZ is out for obvious balancing issues, as is, unfortunately, Bleach. I know of no PC game that's even remotely compatible with these two. I have an idea about another series, but it would seriously negate having some of the current members. Who else can join the JLA? There's just one slot left for an animé before this story arc finishes. Drop me a line so I can finish this story for you all.


	14. No Place Like Home

Disclaimer: I don't own anything in this story other than Guy and Bob Miller. Everything else belongs to somebody else or something else. I also must warn you that this chapter has a high telepathic content value, and may not be suitable for the weak minded. ;-)

* * *

_**No Place Like Home**_

"I don't believe it…" whispered Ukyo as they flew to their destination. Ranma held her hand as Kuno placed his hand on her shoulder as the three stared at the scene below them. Not even the fact that they were inside Ryo-Ohki was bothering Ranma at the moment. The area was flooded and it was painfully obvious that no one had lived there for many, many years. Even from above, one could only see the dull grey of the whitewashed buildings. They could barely make out where the roads used to be and couldn't recognize any landmarks.

"We are now entering Nermia airspace," reported Ami as the cat ship slowly made her way toward the district.

"What happened here?" asked Kuno.

"I'm not sure," said Nene as she approached from behind them wearing her hardsuit sans helmet. "From what I could find, there was a major catastrophic event in the center of the district that caused the government to evacuate the area. It's been restricted access ever since."

"What about Akane? The Amazons? My pops?"

"My twisted sister?"

"I wish I could tell you…"

The four continued to stare out of the viewport as Washu finalized their plan of attack near the main console.

"I don't know about this, Washu," said Bob. "Even if this ship is alien even to the Protoss, I doubt we could just waltz in without some kind of response."

"Even if they don't attack neutral units," added Guy, "I doubt they would disregard Ryo-Ohki as just a native unit to be ignored."

"I wish I could think of something else, guys," answered Washu, "but I can only hope that they at least give us a chance to talk, seeing as this is clearly NOT a Terran ship."

"I wish we could think of something else, too," said Guy. "If only my brother were here…"

"He the RPGer?"

"No, Bob, that's my sister. He's the strategy gamer."

"That's enough, you two," said Washu. "We tried all morning to come up with an alternative and this is what we got. Why don't you two go and help Mackey with those adjustments I gave the Knight Sabers?"

"I have the feeling that we're getting kicked out, Guy."

"I hate it when I'm right, Bob."

The interdimensional counterparts left laughing at the joke only the two of them understood, allowing Washu to focus on other things.

"So, what do you think, Ami?"

"It makes as much sense as it can all things considered."

"And if this doesn't work we'll be relying on Ryoko's tactic of jumping in with metaphorical guns blazing and hope for the best afterwards. I thought I could come up with something a little more creative than that."

"Don't doubt yourself. We didn't have many viable options to begin with."

"Do not worry," said Sylia as she entered the scene. "You have our support, as well as your benefactor."

"That is true, Sylia, thanks. And with the upgrades I made to your hardsuits you guys should be much more effective if things go south. Things have just been escalating ever since we started this mission…but enough about that. What's our ETA, Ami?"

"About ten minutes."

"Alright," she said as she rolled up her sleeve. "Let's do this."

(B-D)

"_P__raetor, something approaches our perimeter!"_

"_What is it_?" asked the relatively young Protoss warrior as he rose from his console.

"_Unknown, but it comes slowly and deliberately."_

"_Let me see." _The warrior glanced at the view screens and studies various readings on the displays._ "Hmm, it's as if it were doing everything it can NOT to avoid detection."_

"_Shall we order it destroyed, __P__raetor?"_

"…_No, not yet. I shall consult the others. It is obviously not of any Terran design that we have encountered. I pray that we do not have yet another faction to deal with. How long until it reaches our outer defenses?"_

"_About five Terran mini-cycles."_

"_Then I would do best to hurry."_

(B-D)

It was only two minutes when Ami called out to Washu.

"What was their reaction?" she asked as everyone gathered around Ami.

"It's some kind of hailing message," reported Ami. "Ryo-Ohki can't recognize any of the languages except one, which is in English."

"English?" asked Washu. "How could they know English?"

"The human faction in Starcraft spoke English," answered Bob. "Since I think it was originally released in the U.S., everyone spoke English."

"Ok, but that leaves us with a problem," pondered Washu. "I may be a genius, but I'm no linguist."

"I'm American born," said Guy, "so I'm fluent."

"Great. That mean you're coming with me, then."

"I am?"

"He doesn't have to," said Leon. "They don't speak Japanese, either, but we were able to talk back at the junkyard. They're telepathic."

"I see," said Washu. "Then I hope they can tell that I'm alien, then…"

"You're what?"

"Oh, right. I'll explain later. Ok, Ami, send a message stating that we'd like to talk and make sure you don't cross their perimeter."

"I'm on it."

Washu walked off, leaving Leon, Bob, and Guy. The two adults looked at Guy.

"Mind explaining that one comment?" asked Leon.

"Well," started Guy as he scratched his head. "Where do I start?"

(B-D)

"_They wish to speak to us?"_ asked the darker Protoss leader. He was barely visible to the naked eye but wore a transparent red cape.

"_Yes, Zeratul,"_ reported the younger Protoss.

"_But who are they, Artanis?"_ asked a third Protoss officer, holding his head high in a dignified manor, his blue crest on his forehead glowing slightly.

"_We do not know, Aldaris, but there is one thing I do know. Although it does not appear to be Terran, they had responded to our hails in English."_

Aldaris regarded the young Praetor. Not many would have been able to realize who the opponent was by knowing which language they spoke. Zeratul, however, had stepped up to the young Protoss.

"_I believe that we should allow them to meet with us, under heavy guard, of course."_

"_And what makes you think that we can trust them if they are indeed Terrans?"_ asked Aldaris. _"The last time we had encountered unknown Terrans…"_

"_You do not need to review the Terran Dominion incident, Aldaris, but this seems to be different. Instead of a grand armada they come in a ship that is obviously not of Terran design. That and they come straight to our base in a slow and non-threatening posture."_

"_Be that as it may, I still have difficulty trusting these Terrans, especially after what we have seen since we arrived here."_

"_As do I,"_ added Artanis. _"but I must agree with Zeratul. The technology on that ship is far greater than anything we've encountered on this planet, and even rivals that of our own. If they had come to attack, they could have done tremendous damage to our base by now. However, they remain just outside our perimeter, waiting for our response."_

Aldaris pondered this for a moment before answering. _"You make a valid point, Praetor. We shall meet with them, but tell them that they may only have four beings come to us. Any others must remain on that ship with a division of scouts and dragoons guarding it."_

"_It shall be done, Judicator,"_ saluted Artanis.

The two older Protoss watched Artanis leave before facing one another. _"You had best pray that this goes better than the last time, Zeratul."_ With that, Artanis took his leave, giving the dark templar leader some alone time.

(B-D)

The alien ship known as Ryo-Ohki had crossed the frontline defenses of the Protoss base and hovered over the designated area. Several smaller ships hovered around her as about ten dragoons took positions in a circle below. Ryo-Ohki visibly sweat-dropped, causing curious looks from the various units. Artanis stood before the strange craft with four dragoons and fifteen zealots behind him. A beam of red light shone for the bottom of the ship and four beings appeared. These beings have teleportation technology. As surprising as this was, it was nothing compared to what he saw. The four beings were indeed Terran in appearance, but they were somehow different. He recognized the lone male in the mecha from the report of the surviving dragoon from the previous night. There was a female to his left. There was nothing strange about her except for the fact that she was hovering two feet in the air. In the center was a younger female with some kind of visor across her eyes and wearing what couldn't possibly be a combat suit. The female that slowly approached him, however, didn't seem to be a warrior of any type, which made him even more alert. Previous encounters with non-warrior types were difficult to forget.

"Greeting," said the Terran with open arms. "I am Washu, leader of the Justice League of Animé. I come in peace."

Artanis regarded the female for a moment before he stepped forward._"Well met, Washu. I am Artanis, Praetor of the Protoss forces. I pray that this shall be a peaceful meeting."_

"As do I," she responded.

Nothing about this female seemed threatening to him. In fact, it seemed that she was unusually calm.

"_Come with me. You may bring your bodyguards with you, but the remainder of your forces must remain on your ship."_

"Not a problem. They won't cause any problems."

"_I am glad to hear that. Let us proceed."_

Artanis led the group to his command center, which caused Washu to suffer a nearly debilitating case of dejá vu. She had hardly recognized the place until they entered the gate. The house was in ruins, and little remained of the dojo in the back, and the addition of a large, golden pyramid between the two was an interesting touch, but she knew where she was. She glanced back at Ryo-Ohki, very glad that Ranma couldn't see the state of his old home.

(B-D)

"Man, I hope those guys'll be alright out there," said Leon as most of the crew stared out the viewport.

"No kidding," said Priss. "That's a lot of firepower out there."

"I know," said Guy. "This is completely outside the rules of the game…unless this happens to be a cut scene moment…" he noticed the stares from his surrounding teammates.

"You know," said Leon, "the more you talk, the more I know you're related to Bob."

"That, sir, I take as a compliment."

As the witty banter continued in an attempt to keep from getting on edge, a small group sat near the far viewport, oblivious to everything around them. Ryo-Ohki could only hide so much, and Ranma was in complete shambles. He had seen the ruined Tendo Dojo below them and it took Ayeka's shield to stop him from getting out. Now he just sat there under her watchful eye, staring at the alien structures litters throughout the Tendo complex. Ukyo was holding him from behind trying to comfort him while Kuno could only watch. A hand placed on Kuno's shoulder got his attention.

"How is he?"

"Not good, I'm afraid. It appears, Tenchi, that the sight of his home in ruins has nearly broken him. Under normal circumstances I would be doing everything I can to increase his misery, but alas, I can only stand idly by, not knowing what to do."

"Didn't you like one of the Tendos, too?"

"Yes, the fierce tigress that is Akane Tendo. How I can never forget that face…but now, seeing her home in ruins and not knowing her fate…I suppose that I, too, feel some of Ranma's pain."

The two boys stood for a while in silence as Ranma continued to cry.

(B-D)

Bob could not believe his ears, or mind as the case was. These were real Protoss around him, and he now understood how they came to his world.

"Ok, so I know that I fully understand…the Zerg had completely overrun your forces, and you used your warp gate to transport to Shakuras but you ended up here, instead. So now you're trying to build a new warp gate so you guys can get home?"

"_You are quick to understand, Terran,"_ said Altaris. _"I would have imagined that it would take some convincing of our story."_

"That's why he's here," said Washu. "Believe it or not, he knows a bit of your history."

"_How is this possible?"_ asked Artanis. _"We have only been here for several Terran cycles and have only had brief but dangerous encounters with the natives, here. That, and according to your report, we are not even from this dimension."_

"I'll explain that part in a moment," said Bob, "but for right now, let's just say that you were supposed to make it to Shakuras. Something must have happened to the gate on Aiur that somehow redirected you to here."

"That was probably one of the outside forces that I told you about," added Washu.

The three Protoss glanced at one another. These Terrans not only believed their incredible story, but understood it and had already developed theories to what had happened. They nodded to each other and Zeratul spoke at last.

"_You are not like the other Terrans that we have encountered before on this world. I feel as if you could very well deliver on your promise to help us."_

"I can also explain that, as well, with a little help from your screen…" said Washu as she brought out her transparent laptop. Several commands later she had complete control of the Protoss view screen.

"_How is this possible!?"_ yelled Aldaris. _"How is it that you are able to interface with our systems?"_

"Like I said earlier, I'm a genius. Now, if you'll just watch the screen here," Washu began as she played footage of the previous night's battle, "the Terrans that you saw coming out of the ground are not actually human."

"_Not human?"_ asked Zeratul.

"Not at all. In this world, they have built human-like machines to perform various tasks."

"Like your drones, for instance," clarified Bob.

"They were given human shape and form so they could do their work without notice. However, as you can see here," she pauses the video and points to a damaged boomer, "and here," the video goes into a split screen with the new screen showing a boomer in mid explosion. "I don't know how much you know about human biology, but I'm sure you at least know that they don't have metal under their skin…" She left the rest of the question blank as the Protoss commanders nodded that they understood. "And since when did humans explode when hit?"

"_More often than you can imagine,"_ replied Zaratul.

"Um, I'm sure, but to explode into a fireball?"

"_We have encountered Terrans that explode in such a manner before,"_ replied Artanis.

"Yeah," countered Bob, "but they were wearing red or blue suits and shot out fire, correct?"

"_Indeed,"_ answered Aldirus.

"Those are the only Terran units that explode like that," continued Bob, "and as you can see from this footage from last night, that those weren't humans, but robots."

"I know you want to protest," inserted Washu, "but they are mostly not for war. These robots are called Boomers, and most of them are designed for tasks such as construction and landscaping, not battle. Unless something happens to their logic processors, they're generally benign."

"_I assume that you are about to explain why we have been ruthlessly attacked whenever we get close to these…boomers?"_ asked Aldaris.

"Yes. As you can see here, this is the frequency and signal strength of the typical boomer logic processor. And here are the readings on your telepathic abilities."

"_While I admit that your technology is impressive,"_ said Aldaris, _"but where is this going?"_

"To the fact that, if you look closely, the frequency of your telepathic communication is the same as the boomer logic processor. Every time any Protoss went near a boomer and communicated to this base, it overloaded these processors and they attacked indiscriminately, even other humans."

Artanis gasped as Zeratul bowed his head in contemplation. Aldaris however was outraged.

"_How dare you imply that we are to blame for this? All we wanted was to find our way back to Shakuras. I shall not…"_

"_Hold, Aldaris,"_ interrupted Zeratul. _"I would like some time to go over this data before holding you in judgment. Wouldn't you agree?"_

Adlaris glared at Zeratul for several moments before answering.

"_Very well, but you four are to remain in here until we return. Come Artanis. Let us discuss this…evidence."_

"_Yes, Judicator."_

The three Protoss nodded to their guests and adjourned to the next room. The four stood for a while before saying anything.

"This is so…freaking…awesome…" Bob said to himself, only now barely able to contain himself.

"You are definitely Guy's counterpart," quipped Washu.

"So far, things have gone pretty well, mom."

"And from what I'm reading through my visor. I now have a near complete knowledgebase on what technology they have and how to use it."

"Wow, Ami, that's impressive," said Washu.

"I'm impressed how you hacked into an alien system in seconds and right in front of them," said Bob.

"It's not something I do too often, but you never know when you'll need them."

"Man, I wish I could travel with you guys. This is a trip!"

"Calm down, buddy," chided Ryoko. "They can probably hear you half way across the base."

"But to meet real aliens…"

"Aliens that don't look human, that is," corrected Ami. "Honestly, if I didn't see this…"

"I know," replied Washu. "We need to stay focused, people. This is the true test of how much they trust us. I truly hope that they see that we're telling the truth."

"Yes," agreed Ami. "I do hope that we can stop this fighting."

"It's pretty much up to Kami-sama to work on their hearts," said Washu. "They looked like they don't really get along too well, you know?"

"Yeah. It's one thing to see it in the game, but to see Aldaris and Zeratul butting heads like that in real life…man, makes me want to play the entire series again."

"Did you see or hear anything that could actually help us?" asked Washu.

"Only the point of divergence. According to the game, they went through the warp gate and landed on Shakuras. There they meet Zeratul's people and find out that the Zerg were there, too. In this case, the warp gate sent them here, instead. Now that I think of it, does that mean the Zerg have come, too?"

"Who are the Zerg, anyway?" asked Ryoko.

"Kinda like the _Aliens_ movie aliens from your time. Real nasty creatures that kill and assimilate whatever it comes across to evolve itself to a higher level. They've been the one major aggressor that has had every race in Starcraft fighting each other for decades. They were controlled by a human/Zerg hybrid for a good long while, too."

"Hmm, I can see how that can be a problem," pondered Washu. "Ami, can I ask you to join me over there for a moment?"

"Of course."

As the two went over to the wayside, Bob looked to Ryoko.

"So what are they going to?"

"Most likely pray."

"Huh? She's a Christian?"

"Yeah. I didn't believe in the stuff, either, till mom had that close encounter."

"Close encounter?"

"Yeah. She met face-to-face with Jesus."

"Dude!"

(B-D)

As expected, they were not silent for long. What had surprised him, however, was the fact that they did not seem to be hiding anything as they spoke amongst themselves. Yes, this was something he rarely did, but these were far for normal circumstances. He remained cloaked and continued to listen until they separated. The two females spoke in hushed tones for a moment. He listened carefully, only to find that the older one simply wished to pray to their deity. Admirable. As he listened to their prayer, he caught the other two speaking of a close encounter. Seeing that the two females were not plotting anything but simply praying, he made his way to the floating female and the armored male. He listened intently on the account the female described. He had no concept of this "Kami-sama" or this Jesus figure, but his eyes widened when he heard about how her face glowed after she met with him. He pondered on this for a moment as his mind ran through the ancient texts and prophecies of the Protoss. Nothing in the experience of his race even came close to what she had described. Then the figurative psy-storm hit. The female had revealed their true mission. His eyes widened as he realized that there was no way anyone could attempted what she said they would do. How could this be true? It could not be, but he sensed no deception in her words or her thoughts. That's when she started looking around, as if searching for something. Indeed, this one knew that her mind had been touched by another. Impressive. He had gathered what he needed. He withdrew to the next room to inform his comrades of his findings.

"What's wrong?"

"I don't know, Bob" said Ryoko. "It felt like something tried to scan my thoughts…"

"Hmm, the Protoss are telepathic. They could've been trying to read our minds to see if we're being truthful or not. The rules of the game are completely different during the cut scenes…"

"Bob..."

"Sorry."

(B-D)

It was another fifteen minutes before the three Protoss leaders rejoined Washu's group. They all took their seats. The three glanced at one another before they started.

"_We have examined your data and find it difficult to believe,"_ started Aldaris, _"however, when compared to our own records, things have begun to fall into place. If not for the fantastic nature of our situation, we would have dismissed this folly outright, but all things considered we believe that, for the time being, it would be best if we continued our dialog."_

"_We believe,"_ continue Artanis, _"that it would be in the interest of all if we could return to Shakuras as soon as possible. I believe that you can help us with this venture."_

Washu perked up at this. "We are honored to be able to help you. If I may, I'd like to return to our ship so I can contact this planet's government to ensure that they don't attack you while we help out."

"_Very well,"_ said Zeratul. _"Let us know when you are ready to proceed."_

"Thank you very much."

(B-D)

A meow was all they needed to hear to know that the Washu's team was back. Everyone gathered around as they finished materializing and began bombarding them with questions. After a few moments Washu was able to get their attention.

"Ok, the good news is they believe us and would like us to help them get home."

"And the bad news?" asked Priss.

"I didn't say anything about bad news, did I?" she winked.

"You gotta be kidding me," said Priss.

"You mean the diplomatic approach actually worked?" exclaimed Linna.

"Yep."

"So…no pitched battle against the Protoss to determine the fate of this dimension?" asked Guy.

"Nope."

"No misunderstanding that'll force us to side with them to fight Earth's military?" asked Rei.

"Only if Leon doesn't call his HQ to let them know that the threat has been handled."

The tension in the area deflated as people began to mill about in a state of shock. Bob pulled Leon aside so they could call APD HQ to inform them of what was going on while Sylia did the same. That afternoon Washu, Ami, and Sylia worked along with the Protoss to help rebuild their warp gate, which had somehow appeared with them yet was in shambles. After five hours of work everything was fixed up again, but not all was well.

"_The warp gate,"_ sighed Artanis, _"it is not functional."_

"From what I understand of your technology," started Washu, "everything should be running smoothly."

"_Then why is it non-functional?"_ demanded Aldaris.

"I don't know…and stop scanning my mind; it makes it hard to concentrate." Aldaris backed off for the moment. "Let see…" Washu had pulled out her laptop again and started typing.

"_What is she doing?"_ asked Artanis.

"I don't know," said Ami. "Usually when she zones out like that, there's no stopping her. Whatever it is, she's going to figure out a solution for you."

"_Her mind is quicker than most. I have not seen anyone do calculations faster than our own systems."_

"She is a special one," Ami beamed with pride. "There isn't much she can't solve."

"I have no idea why this thing isn't working," stated Washu. Artanis gave an amused glance toward Ami, who was looking down with a slight blush. "But it isn't a problem with the gate itself. I wonder…" Insert rapid-fire typing sequence here. "Nope, that's not it…no…Not that, either…Aldaris, can you give me the coordinates of Shakuras?"

"_Zeratul would have them."_

"_That I do,"_ said the now visible Protoss.

She allowed him to type in the needed information and typed in a few more commands. "What is the problem? Why can't I find it?"

"Washu?"

"Yes, Sylia?"

"We could be looking at this the wrong way." Washu arched an eyebrow. "You had mentioned before that they were not from this dimension…"

Washu smacked her forehead. "Of course! I CAN'T BELIEVE I MISSED THAT!" She glanced around at the staring eyes of various species. "Heh, sorry. Anyway, all this data makes perfect sense, now. This gate is designed for long distance interstellar travel, not interdimensional travel. We'd have to do some major modifications to this gate, but it would take a real long time and a lot of manpower…and Protoss know-how."

"_Are you saying that we are trapped here indefinitely?"_ exclaimed Aldaris.

"No, you're not," answered Washu, "but you're going to need more help than I can give you. Sylia? We're going to need the government to help them."

"That…may be difficult."

"I know, but it's the only way. We can't afford to stay here for too much longer considering our larger mission."

"_You mean your mission to save two dimensional clusters?"_ asked Zeratul, surprising Washu. _"Yes, I know of your mission from the floating female. I remained in the room with you while you waited and listened to your conversations. I do apologize, but we did not trust you at first, but after what I had heard, I do believe enough to understand. As long as the Terrans do not attack us and keep those boomers away, then we shall not attack the settlement anymore."_

"Hmm," Washu thought for a moment. "I don't appreciate what you did, but I understand why you did it. I'm glad that we were able to help. I'll send you the instructions and files on how to configure this gate for interdimensional travel later tonight."

"_Very well,"_ answered Aldaris. _"We pray that the other Terrans will be as honorable and truthful as you have been."_

"And thank you for listening and not shooting us out of the sky," smiled Washu.

(B-D)

It came as a surprise when the Japanese government agreed to the terms given them by Sylia to help the Protoss repair their warp gate. There would be a Knight Saber and a high ranking officer of the ADP on site the entire time to ensure that things would go smoothly. Of course this would all be kept a secret. The JLA was able to spend one more day to relax before going on to the next world, but first they had one more item of business to take care of.

"What do you mean two of us are going with you?" yelled Priss as the Knight Sabers met with Washu, Ami, and Guy.

"We have our orders," replied Washu as she pointed upward. "According to what we've learned, we pick up a couple of heroes from each dimension we visit while leaving behind some 'Defenders of the Realm,' as they're referred to. We only have short clues to let us know who's joining us, but usually after we help out the clues are pretty obvious. That's why we waited until now to look at them."

"Ok," mused Linna, "so what are these clues?"

"Ami, now that we've managed to link your Mercury Computer to my database, why don't you do the honors?"

"Alright," she said as her visor appeared. She had discovered earlier that she doesn't even need to transform to use the Mercury Computer anymore. "The first clue is, 'The Knight Hacker.' That's spelled with a 'k.'"

"The only hacker we have…" started Nene as her teammates stared at her. "What? Me?"

"Looks like it," said Washu. "I think we could use someone else who's good with systems and cyber-warfare, considering the nature of our known enemies."

"But I'm not much of a fighter," complained Nene.

"That's what most of us are," said Guy. "Out of all of us, Washu and Ami are the only intelligence-based member we have. Everyone else has skills in other fields. I'm sure you'll be able to coordinate things better than I could."

"So how am I going to not get fired from my job? It was hard enough to get in, but if I'm gone for who knows how long…"

"Hold on," interrupted Ami. "Washu, there's a link under the next clue that says 'Print this.' Could you…?"

"No problem," said Washu. "I have a feeling that this'll solve that issue. What's the other clue?"

"The second and finally clue is, 'the red hair band.'"

All eye turned to Linna, who was sporting her characteristic red hair band. "What are…ooohhh no! Not me, too."

"Don't worry," said Guy, "There's rarely a dull moment with us."

"That's not what I meant," moaned Linna.

Priss and Guy sat amused at Linna's suffering as Washu brought out her laptop and printed the contents of the link to the Saber's printer. She picked it up and read the first page. "Whoa."

"What is it?" asked Sylia.

"Looks like Kami-sama provided you two with detached assignments notes for your employers."

"What?" exclaimed Nene and Linna.

"Signed by…"

_**Ring!**_

"Was that the phone?" asked Ami.

"Yeah," answered Priss. "We usually don't get calls here."

"Nene!" called a far off voice.

"Yeah, Doc?"

"Pick up the phone!"

"Kay!" Nene went to the phone and picked it up. "Hello, this is Nene…OH! Yes, sir…yes……really?...yes sir. Of course, sir. I won't let you down…yes, I'll give you the document first thing in the morning…thank you, sir. Good-bye." Click. "Oh…my…God!" Everybody stared at her with questioning looks about their faces. "That was the defense minister of Japan. He wants me to come over tomorrow to hand him that," she points to the papers that Washu is holding, "so I can go on Top Secret assignment…did you…?"

"I had nothing to do with this," defended Washu. "I just tell you what I know, when I know it."

"And what about me?" asked Linna. "There's no real official way that could…"

"You've been selected by the government for a special assignment that will require you to miss work for an undetermined amount of time," summarized Washu as she read another page of the document. "It states to keep you on their payroll and ensures that you continue to receive a pay check until you can resume a normal work schedule. I think you're covered, Linna."

"Hmm, guess I'd better set up my bill payments, then."

(B-D)

Washu had spent another all-nighter at the garage upgrading and improving the Knight Saber's hardsuits. As the rest of the league joined them that afternoon she was explaining to them some of the improvements.

"…so now you can teleport your armor onto your bodies now, like those cartoon characters do."

"Oh wow!" exclaimed Nene.

"That'll be pretty handy, all right," said Priss, obviously impressed.

"And I know how to repair these advanced systems," said Sylia, "so we can continue to use this to our advantage."

"You just couldn't help yourself, could you?" quipped Guy.

"It's been a long time, Guy. I had to get my fix. Plus it'll help our new teammates, too, so it was definitely worth it."

"Well let's get this show on the road," said Ranma.

Washu looked over Ranma, with Ukyo and Kuno on either side of him. They somehow looked older than before. She knew about his reaction the day before and was wondering how they had handled the situation. "How are you guys?"

"We'll be fine," said Ranma with a glint in his eyes. "We're not going to let these things hurt anybody else."

"If this is…" started Washu with concern.

"It's not just that," interrupted Kuno. "We are fully aware that this is not our true home, but a possibility. There could have been any number of things that could have caused Nermia's destruction."

"Heck, we could've been the reason," continued Ukyo, "but we're gonna make sure that this doesn't happen again, anywhere."

"You say that there's a ton of lives depending on us, right?"

"Um…yeah, Ranma…"

"We've had a taste of what it's like if we fail, and I don't like it. I really don't like it. Forget my girl problem. Forget my pop's stupid mistakes. That's all small stuff. We got much bigger things to deal with. This is the biggest challenge a martial artist could ever face, and Ranma Saotome never backs down from a challenge."

"Nor does Takewaki Kuno."

"And neither does Ukyo Kuonji."

"Whatever it takes, we're gonna beat this."

Washu stood in stunned silence for a full minute. These kids seemed to have matured at least ten years overnight, and it was frightening.

"Alright," she said cautiously, "but don't go doing anything crazy…"

"Crazy's in my name," responded Ranma with a grin, "but we ain't gonna do nothin' stupid."

Washu regarded the three for another moment before continuing. "I'm glad to see that this didn't break you like I feared. Now I see why you're on this team. I know it's a bit late, but I'm honored to have you three by my side." She received nods from the three. "Alright, ladies, are you ready?"

"No," Nene and Linna replied with a giggle.

"Good. Neither are we. Let's go!"

Washu pressed the button on her C.I.T. A large, circular portal swirling with a psychedelic mix of blue and white appeared, with the occasional flash of lightning. Never mind the gentle 20mph breeze.

"Um, is that lightning safe?" asked Nene, not expecting to be drowned out by the loud rumble emitted by the portal.

"Let's move!" yelled Washu, never hearing the question over the wind.

The large group of heroes entered the portal and once inside Nene's and Linna's the new members' eyes strained as they oriented themselves amidst the swirling blue and white. Kuno's face remained stoic and still while Ranma and Ukyo glanced at each other with renewed vigor. Rei and Ami just stared about, admiring the scenery. Washu was watching the area carefully. Hotaru began doing cartwheels again around Ayeka and Tenchi, who just stood there, waiting.

_**POP!**_

The swirl of the portal disappeared and they found themselves somehow floating. What bothered her was that they weren't wet.

"This is new," said Tenchi as he turned to Kuno.

Tenchi, Ayeka, Ryoko, Ryo-Ohki, and Washu watched curiously as everyone else were making various signs and holding their necks. Washu's eyes widened in horror as she noticed Earth right behind them. What she didn't notice, however, were the three giants spaceships behind her, one of which looked a lot like a giant robot with what seemed like aircraft carriers for arms.

(B-D)


	15. War Between Worlds

Disclaimer: There's a ton of stuff in this story that I don't own. If I did, I'd be doing more constructive things. I do own Guy, though, so at least I have something.

Guest starring the Narrator - _The Narrator speaking_

* * *

_**War Between Worlds**_

_For over a year the crew of the SDF-1 had been continuously harassed by the awesome forces of the Zentraedi. There were many close calls, but for reasons unknown the Zentraedi have refused to outright destroy the Robotech flying fortress. After a long, harrowing journey from the far side of Pluto, Captain Henry Gloval had finally returned his ship, crew, and the 70,000 civilian population inside the ship to their home on Earth, only to be refused permission to disembark the civilians so that the United Earth government could maintain their cover story that there really was no alien threat._

_Meanwhile, Kyron of the Zentraedi had launched an attack shortly after the return of Captain Gloval and Lt. Commander Hayes from their debriefing at Alaska base. Arzonia, current leader on the Zentraedi forces, was about to recall Kyron when suddenly a new enemy appeared from an interdimension portal. Another alien force, known as the Kilrathi, came through this portal. This lion-like warrior race was very similar to the Zentraedi, but they had something that the giant aliens did not, an extreme hatred for the entire human race. It was at this time that ace combat pilot Roy Fokker was shot down, critically injured, and fell into a coma, leaving a saddened Rick Hunter to take command of the Skull Squadron._

_The Kilrathi showed no restraint as they first targeted the SDF-1, and then other civilian targets as they scouted the Earth. The United Earth Government could no longer deny the existence of hostile alien life and agreed to take the civilian population so that the flying fortress could be a complete military weapon. Unfortunately, constant attacks from both invading forces have prevented them from disembarking, effectively stranding the civilians._

_Meanwhile, Arzonia sent a report to Commander-in-Chief Dolza requesting more ships to combat the new enemy. Seeing that the prized flying fortress was in danger, Dolza sends Commander Breetai with the Imperial Fleet to take over the task of capturing the SDF-1. Upon his arrival, Breetai sent Arzonia's and Kyron's forces to combat the Kilrathi with orders to completely destroy them while he concentrated on capturing the fortress. Once they had finished several transfer requests, Arzonia and Kyron left with their orders. Breetai soon attacked the SDF-1 once it returned to Earth's orbit, only to experience an unprecedented event. Due to the exposure to human culture, masses of Zentraedi broke ranks and defected to the humans. During the attack that interrupted the wedding reception of Veritech ace pilot Max Sterling and the Zentraedi ace pilot Miriya Parino, many even refused to fight. Seeing this, Breetai called off his attack and sent Exedore to meet with the human crew._

_Knowing that Dolza would be coming with the rest of the Zentraedi armada, Breetai and Gloval called for an alliance in hopes of surviving the inevitable attack. It did indeed come, and Dolza ordered all ships to fire on the planet's surface. Just as the order was given a large force from the Kilrathi broke past Arzonia's forces and blindsided the huge armada, causing confusion among the ranks as the SDF-1 broadcast music on all Zentraedi channels, but the damage was already done. 60 of the Earth surface was destroyed, with some major cities barely managing to survive. The grand cannon also destroyed a good-sized portion of the armada before it, too, was completely destroyed. In a desperate maneuver, Gloval had the SDF-1 ram through Dolza's fortress until it reached the heart of the asteroid. They fired every reflex warhead they had before raising their Omni-Directional Barrier. By the end of the day, Rick Hunter, after a daring rescue of Lt. Commander Lisa Hayes from Alaska Base, watched with her as the SDF-1 crash landed in a large crater. With Dolza's fortress destroyed and some fighting later, the rest of the Zentraedi surrendered to Breetai._

_Unfortunately the peace would not last for long. During the Zentraedi bombardment of the planet, deep underground in a buried tomb that was erased from history millennia ago, a seal was broken. It was a mere crack at first, but the prisoners knew that they could now free themselves soon enough. After two long years, the seal was finally broken, freeing the three demonic brothers from their long imprisonment. Once they returned to the surface to see how much time had past, they soon realized that they had a lot of work to do, and so they began._

_Meanwhile, at population of Macross City has once again rebuilt their homes, this time in the surrounding area of the SDF-1 as it stood proudly at its post. It was here that what remained of the world government congregated and unanimously voted the now Admiral Gloval to lead them in this new age. The Zentraedi were still dealing with the Kilrathi threat above the Earth, so it was decided to build a new battle fortress, called the SDF-2. As the new ship was near completion, strange rumors began to spread about unusual things happening around the world. These were isolated at first, but soon RDF forces were battling strange creatures not seen in recent human history. Only one clue as to the strange phenomena was able to reach the ears of the leadership. The name Baal._

_Roy Fokker, having been in a coma for almost a year, was finally able to return for duty and watched the now Admiral Lisa Hayes and her lead fighter pilot Commander Rick Hunter take off in the brand new SDF-2. Their mission: to help Arzonia and Kyron finally defeat the Kilrathi, then move on to the homeworld of the Robotech Masters to ensure the safety of Earth. Little did they know, the Kilrathi had built an immense structure on the far side of the moon. It was a jumpgate designed to bring reinforcements to the motherland of the humans. The combined human/Zentraedi forces struck just as the jumpgate was activated. It was destroyed, but not before it hurled many large, spherical objects to the planet's surface. Roy's unit was sent to investigate only to find some kind of field base surrounded by various types of destroid-style mecha. When asked to identify themselves, they claimed to be Clan Wolf and opened fire. Roy's unit was barely able to escape._

_The world is in chaos. Demons and the undead walk the earth while the SDF-2 is locked in battle in orbit with the Kilrathi. The RDF can only spare a few destroids to help against the demons, but must concentrate on the raiding mecha from Clan Wolf._

(B-D)

_In the observation lounge of the SDF-2, two souls watch the stars as they take comfort in each others' company. It had been a long time since they had been dealing with their feelings for one another, but things were finally put to rest during that fateful launch of the SDF-2 when Linn Minmei accepted that her true calling was as a singer, while Rick and Lisa's calling was for the military and for each other._

They sat on a bench, Rick's arm around Lisa as she listened to his heart beat. They didn't say much. They didn't need to. All they wanted was to be together. Rick, however, still had several things on his mind.

"What happened, Lisa?"

"What do you mean, Rick?"

"I mean, we were at war with the Zentraedi for years, and we thought that was crazy, but now…zombies?"

"I told you, Rick, that's not confirmed…"

"It's what Roy told me. He's fighting on two fronts back at home while we're up here. It's one thing to fight a single enemy and have an idea of what you're up against, but three?"

"Don't worry, Rick," said Lisa as she straightened herself to meet Rick's eyes. "Once we stop the Kilrathi we can at least help with those renegade destroids before leaving."

"I know…I know," sighed Rick as he stared out into space.

Lisa watched him for a moment before she gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. Rick looked at her as she stood up.

"It's time for us to get some sleep. We have a long day ahead of us tomor…"

Suddenly the alarms went off, the lights fading from white to red and back again with warnings of an attack over the PA system. Rick shot up.

"Looks like the day's starting sooner than we thought," sighed Rick.

"I'm afraid so. Report to your station."

"Yes ma'am!"

(B-D)

"What's our status?" asked Lisa as she entered the bridge.

"We have 3 large battle ships incoming, one Zentraedi and two Kilrathi. The Zentraedi cruiser is confirmed to be Kyron's."

"Oh great," sighed Lisa. "He's one of the few Zentraedi that still holds a grudge from the old war. Contact his ship and inform him that we are inbound to assist."

"Yes, admiral."

"Sophie, have all Veritech pilots ready for launch."

"Roger that, Admiral Hayes."

Lisa sat in her command chair. It still felt a little strange sitting there. Until recently she had a mostly untested crew sprinkled with some veterans from what is being known as the Robotech War, but with this experience with the utterly ruthless Kilrathi they have managed to prove themselves to their new commander. Lisa has also proven herself to not only her new crew but also to herself. She knew that this post wouldn't be easy, and she knew that their technology was at least a little bit ahead of the Kilrathi, but their shielding technology was far beyond what they had. The Kilrathi shields, fortunately, couldn't withstand their weaponry for long, but stood long enough to be effective. Their ships took about five or six direct hits to take down the shields, then one good shot to take down the ship itself. Against the Zentraedi lasers was a different story. It was found early on their lasers tended to feed their shields energy, overloading them and the ship. A pleasant surprise, but they were beginning to adapt. That's why the SDF-2 came up to help, to help the orbiting Zentraedi end the cat and mouse battles above Earth.

_Meanwhile, aboard Kyron's cruiser, Zentraedi were putting their newly acquired skills of ship repairs to extensive use. Many crew members cheered when their S.O.S. was answered by the SDF-2. There was one man, however, who was not very happy at all._

"Of all the rotten luck, it would have to be the micronians that would be the first to respond."

"At least we were able to reach someone, my lord," replied Grell, Kyron's second-in-command.

"Be quiet and ensure that we won't need that much help from them. I would prefer to destroy them than these accursed Kilrathi, although they have proven themselves almost as cunning an adversary as the micronians."

"Yes, sire," Grell answered as he turned on his heel and left.

Kyron stood on his bridge as activity blurred around him. He seethed at the memory of an hour ago when his battle group of three ships was ambushed by three Kilrathi destroyers. They destroyed one on the first barrage. The second was crippled when they had a chance to respond. At least they destroyed one ship before he had to flee. An explosion rocked Kyron's ship again. He began barking orders to counterattack once they got their weapons system back up.

(B-D)

The battle was on. The SDF-2 had managed to blindside one of the Kilrathi ships, nearly crippling it only to be destroyed by Kyron's ship. The infamous Skull Squadron, led by Commander Rick Hunter, had engaged the Kilrathi fighters in combat. Kyron had also sent out his battle pods to attack the remaining destroyer itself. The intense battle raged as casualties were taken on all sides.

"Max, watch your six!" yelled Rick over the radio.

"He's not the only one watching that six," commented a sexy female voice as the bandit on ace pilot Max Sterling was obliterated less than a second later. "As long as I'm out here, no one shall shoot down my husband."

"So you keep saying," said Rick.

"Thanks, Miriya," said Max as he took out another bogey. "So how many cats have you taken out, Rick?"

"I think I'm around seven. How about you?"

"That last one was number twelve."

"Well, at least you aren't doubling up on me this time."

"Not for the lack of trying."

"Skull Leader, please come in."

"Yeah, Leutenent Sophie, I read you."

"We've detected some kind of anomaly around the remains of the first Kilrathi ship. Could you please investigate?"

"Roger that. We're on our way." Rick shook his head as the transmission ended. He still wasn't used to Lisa not contacting him with those kinds of orders. He switched over to general transmit. "Skull 2 and 3, take my wing. There's something strange going on at that dead cat ship."

"Roger, Skull Leader," replied Max and Miriya.

"Skull 4, you feel up to taking over for a while?"

"Don't worry about a thing, Captain. I'll have this battle done so fast my cheesesteak won't even be cold when we get back."

"Heh, thanks, Ben. Max, Miriya, let's go."

And the three Veritech fighters broke off to investigate the remains of the Kilrathi destroyer.

(B-D)

"What's wrong with them?" Ryoko asked non-chillingly as the rest of the JLA frantically waved their arms and held their necks. A couple of them started to fade.

"Look behind you, Ryoko," pointed Washu.

She and the others glanced back, seeing a majestic view of the planet Earth. She looked back to Washu and shrugged.

"So?"

"They can't survive in space like we can. They're not normal, but they're still human."

"Well Tenchi can…oh."

"Ryo-Ohki! Transform and pick everybody up NOW!"

"MEOW!"

Ryo-Ohki's transformation was frighteningly fast as the cat/rabbit hybrid morphed into the brown, crystalline-styled scourge of another galaxy. With the transformation complete, she shot a red beam at her friends, transporting them inside her where she could provide atmosphere for them. As they appeared on the floor, Tenchi, Washu, and Ayeka checked the others to make sure that they were OK. Most were shivering uncontrollably, and some didn't move at all. Washu quickly placed them into her green prison spheres so she could monitor them and keep their condition from worsening.

"We need to get these guys some medical attention," stated Washu. Tenchi and Ayeka glanced worriedly at each other. "If Hotaru was awake there wouldn't be a problem, but they all just suffered from the equivalent of explosive decompression and floated in a vacuum for almost a minute. If any of them tried to hold their breath…"

"Mea!"

"Whoa!" yelled Tenchi as Ryo-Ohki suddenly began to move erratically, throwing everyone off balance.

"HEY! Calm down over there!" yelled Washu.

"Can't," replied Ryoko. "We got incoming!"

"Oh crud," sighed Washu.

(B-D)

Three minutes earlier…

The ace pilots had made their way into the debris field of the Kilrathi destroyer and switched to guardian mode. The debris was mostly Kilrathi, but they did come across the occasional battle pod debris.

"Any idea what we're looking for, Rick?" asked Max.

"No idea. Just keep your eyes pealed for anything unusual."

"What's unusual is that we're going through the wreckage of a Kilrathi ship," said Miriya. "From what I understand, they tend to leave booby traps even in death."

"I doubt traps could survive the entire ship exploding," said Rick.

"It never hurts to be cautious."

"Wow, Max, you really did a number on her, didn't you?"

"Well…um…"

"Rick, you don't want to continue that path," Miriya said with a hint of ice.

"Hey, I'm just saying that you're come a long way from the old days. If I remember right, you were pretty reckless before you married Max…whoa, guys, what is that?"

The conversation stopped as they saw a blue and white portal appear their scanners. It was only there for a split-second, and then popped. They slowly approached the site

"Um, did you guys hear that?"

"You mean that weird popping sound, Rick?"

"Thanks Max. I was hoping I wasn't losing my mind."

"That may still be up for debate."

"I'll get you back for that later, Miriya," Rick smirked. "Wait a minute…those are people out there."

"What?" yelled the Sterlings.

"There's a group of people out there without suits about half a click in front of us. They're alive if their waving arms aren't enough of a clue. We need to save them. They may have been the cats' prisoners…whoa…"

The three stopped cold as a strange ship seemed to grow from out of nowhere. It was unlike anything they had ever seen. It was brown and gray and had what seemed like the least aerodynamic design ever. What was even stranger was the fact that it meowed.

"That wasn't…" started Max.

"It was," answered Rick. He would have said more but the strange ship shot some kind of beam at the group of people, causing them to disappear. "What the…? NO!"

"What did that thing do to those people?" asked Miriya.

"I don't know," said Rick, "but that thing is definitely a cat ship. We'll lure it out into the open then destroy it. We'll let the science teams figure out the rest."

"Roger that," replied his wingmen.

"Let's go!"

(B-D)

They had come in guardian mode firing their rifles at Ryo-Ohki. She dodged erratically in several directions as she managed to avoid every shot. She quickly left the debris field so she could maneuver better, but that's when the fun really started. The three aces launched the infamous Macross Missile attack, a ridiculously large amount of missiles fired at five or fewer targets, causing explosions that generally covered a two square mile area in the air or in space. Ryo-Ohki struggled to avoid every ring of fiery death that tried to envelope them. The Veritech pilots split up into a flanking maneuver, only to watch in shock as Ryo-Ohki shot pass Max at an incredible speed. They switched to their jet mode and quickly pursued their target.

"These guys ain't half bad," said Ryoko. "They actually managed to almost hit us back there. Hey, mom. Mind telling me why we can't attack these guys again?"

"Because we don't know if they're the heroes of this world or not," answered Washu as she kept herself strapped in her seat. "Besides, you have to take it easy here, too. The laws of physics seem to be a little different from what we're used to and Ryo-Ohki's inertial nullifiers aren't working properly. I don't have to remind you that our friends are in serious condition."

"Geez, just take the fun out of everything."

"Have they tried to contact us, yet?

"No, mom."

"Darn it. We can't communicate with them until they show us what kind of communication devises they use. Keep dodging them. I'll try to get a message to them."

Washu materialized her laptop as Ryoko and Ryo-Ohki continued to dodge and weave. Meanwhile, the aces were greatly impressed with their opponent. They were also very concerned that the enemy could have this kind of weapon.

"Man, that thing's fast," said Max.

"No kidding," said Rick. "That's one heckofa pilot that thing's got."

"Indeed a worthy foe," added Miriya, "but against us three it cannot stand a chance."

"He's doing a pretty good job so far," replied Rick.

"Skull 4 to Skull Leader, do you copy?"

"This is Skull Leader, Ben. You guys ok?"

"Yeah, but the last of the cat ships are heading your way with us in pursuit. Thought you might want a heads up."

"Thanks, Ben. We're dealing with an unknown bogey that seems to be a cat ship, too. Let's see if we can sandwich these guys."

"You're talking my language, boss. I'll relay the orders to the others."

"Good. Rick out…you guys get that?"

"We're ready when you are, Rick."

"Let's do this."

(B-D)

"Wow, that's a lot of incoming," mused Ryoko as she noticed the 3 sets of ships coming toward them. Tenchi and Ayeka held on to their seats even tighter.

"I see," said Washu as she analyzed what Ryo-Ohki saw. "Seems like we have 3 different factions fighting up here. This could get messy."

"I think we're getting a call from one of them."

"Really? Let me talk to them."

As a floating crystal faded into view a picture appeared. The face was that of a lion but with a pilot's helmet and a light green visor. They stared at each other for a few seconds.

"What manner of ship do you have, there, human?" growled the lion pilot, his voice low and guttural.

"We mean you no harm. I'm Washu, and I came to help where we can…"

"You've come to help the humans? Than you, too, shall perish at the hands of the mighty Kilrathi."

The screen suddenly went dead and the floating crystal faded away.

"Nice job, mom."

"Well, at least we have a clue of who you can attack, now."

Ryoko smirked.

(B-D)

They were already near their maximum flight speed as they gave chase to the strange cat ship when it suddenly accelerated. They couldn't keep up anymore, but were able to keep it in sight. Rick was about to warn his squadron of the incoming but instead witnessed this single ship cut and weave through the remaining 34 Kilrathi fighters. In about 5 seconds, there were no Kilrathi fighters left, and the lone ship seemed to sit there, waiting for them to catch up. Rick ordered the other Veritechs to surround the ship. About 20 guardian-mode Veritechs and 50 Zentraedi battle pods had surrounded Ryo-Ohki with all weapons trained on her. Rick pulled ahead and tried to radio the waiting ship.

"This is Commander Rick Hunter of the Robotech Defense Force. You are ordered to surrender and come with us peacefully or be destroyed."

Washu was about to respond when Ryoko caught her eye. Against her better judgment she let her daughter give the reply.

"What the?" yelled Rick as a teal-haired female appeared in front of his mecha. Her hands were held up for a moment before giving him a thumbs up. Rick scratched his head for a moment. "I guess that means you'll come with us?" She nodded in the affirmative. "How can she hear me from out there?" Ryoko slowly approached Rick fighter and faded into the chassis. Rick glanced around, trying to find her, when suddenly her head fazed through his console and smirked at him. "AAHHH!!"

"I'm not human, that's why. I am still a friend, though, cutie. If my friends inside didn't need some medical attention, I might take a minute to flirt with you some more."

"Uh…sure?"

"Ok. We'll follow you, then. Buh bye."

With that, she fazed out of his fighter and returned to Ryo-Ohki.

"Rick, are you ok?"

"Um, yeah, Max, I'm fine…strange, though. _cough._ Anyway, they said that they had a medical emergency and they'll come with us. Contact the SFD-2 and have medic teams standing by."

"Roger that."

(B-D)

It was true a sight to behold. The ship that killed over 30 Kilrathi fighters in under 5 seconds had come willingly and peacefully to their ship. It was indeed alien in design, even to the Zentraedi. Exedore, who was visiting before they engaged in this battle, had accompanied Admiral Hayes to the flight desk with several medical teams and three squads of marines. As the landing platform carrying the ship and its escort of Skulls 1-3 finally came to a rest, all those present simply stared at the spacecraft.

"I must say, this is quite remarkable, Admiral," said Exedore.

"Yes, it is," said Lisa. "I've never seen anything like it. Where do you suppose it came from?"

"I think we may be about to find out."

Just as he said this, the teal-haired girl from before appeared in front of the officers, putting everyone on high alert and training all weapons on her.

"Hmm, jumpy fellas, aren't you?"

"Greetings," said Lisa as she approached the woman. "I'm Admiral Lisa Hayes and welcome aboard the SDF-2. I understand that you need some medical attention?"

"Oh, not me. My friends are inside. I just came out first so you wouldn't shoot them when we bring them out."

"We understand. We will hold our fire for now."

"Hmm, you guys are serious, eh? Ok then. Yo! Ryo-Ohki! Put them over there."

The same red beam that Rick had seen earlier shot out once again, but this time several bodies materialized on the floor. Three were standing while the others were in strange green spheres. The redheaded woman called for the medical teams to get her friends. As they got to each of them, she touched it and the sphere faded away while allowing the person inside to slowly land on the waiting stretcher. A boy and a woman left with the teams as the redhead approached the officers.

"Hi there. I'm Washu. Thanks for taking care of our friends."

"Not a problem," replied Lisa as she gave Washu a once over. "You certainly appear human…"

"Most of us are, but Ryoko and I aren't. I'm sure that you'd want to talk to us about a few things. Just for the record, though, we really mean you guys no harm. In fact, I think we may be able to help."

"If that's the case then we could really use it. Please, come with me. Commander Hunter, please report to main conference room with the Sterlings."

"Yes ma'am," saluted the Veritech.

"Mind if we bring Ryo-Ohki with us?" asked Ryoko.

"Who?"

"My partner."

"Oh…I see. I don't see why not, but did you just call your ship…."

"Ok, Come on, Ryo-Okhi."

"Mea!" Everyone jumped when the ship meowed and seemed to implode. Where once stood a totally alien ship of wicked design now stood a small, brown cat/rabbit hybrid of some kind. It happily hopped to Ryoko and easily leapt upon her shoulder. "Mea." She waved at Lisa and Exedore.

"Absolutely astounding!" exclaimed Exedore.

"How did…?" started Lisa. "That's…incredible."

"Thank you. I built her myself."

They stared at the redhead for several seconds. "You 'built' that creature?"

"Mea!"

"She doesn't like being called that," quipped Washu.

"My apologies," said Exedore. "We meant no insult."

"Mea."

"She forgives you," said Ryoko.

Lisa and Exedore glanced at each other. This was going to be a very interesting debriefing.

(B-D)

_As Lisa and Exedore escort the strange aliens to be debriefed, their friends were taken to the nearby military hospital. A couple of the young girls had awakened on the way there, but the rest remained in serious but stable condition. Tenchi and Ayeka were allowed to visit the recovered girls in a nearby waiting room, but only under heavy guard._

"What happened to us, guys?" asked Rei.

"The portal dropped us off in space," explained Ayeka. "We can survive in a vacuum, but didn't know that you could. Ryo-Ohki teleported us all in as soon as we realized what was going on."

"I guess that our sailor powers healed us quicker than the others," said Ami. "That would explain why we woke up, first."

"But why do they have us under guard?" asked Hotaru. "We're the goodguys."

"We know that, Hotaru," said Tenchi, "but they don't. They seem to be in the middle of a war or something, and they think that we may aliens."

"Makes sense," said Rei. "Now that we're back again, do you think they'll let Hotaru heal the others?"

"I'll go and ask," volunteered Tenchi. "I just hope they don't find that to be too weird."

(B-D)

"And that's why we're here," concluded Washu. "Any questions?"

The panel of officers stared slack-jawed at the scientist. Washu had just explained the whole story of interdimensional travel to them as well as the video game invaders. Lisa rubbed her temples as she tried to wrap her head around their story. As if zombies and demons and homicidal cat people weren't enough, now these people bring in parallel dimensions. This all sounded like a sci-fi horror movie gone horribly wrong.

"If we weren't already fighting the unbelievable, I'd have you committed."

"Believe me, Admiral," said Washu, "I had a hard time believing this, too. Once you've lived through it, though, you tend to be a bit less cynical."

"I beg your pardon."

"Sorry, that came out wrong. I have one member of my team that's a video game expert. He's the only reason why we even know what we're up against. Once he recovers he should be able to give us all move information. I have a little knowledge on this subject, but it's hard for me to tell who's from where….oh, hold on. I got a call." Washu put her ring communicator near her mouth. The officers glanced at one another in confusion.

"Washu, this is Ami."

"Ah, Ami, you're awake!"

"Yes, as are Rei and Hotaru. Are you busy?"

"Well…" she paused as she glanced about the room. "Kinda. I'm explaining our story to the command staff of this ship."

"We're in a ship?"

"Yep."

"Wow…um, the guards won't let us see the others and Hotaru…"

"Say no more. I'll ask them. Washu out." She tapped her ring and returned her attention to the panel. "Sorry about that. Some of our team just woke up. One of them is a healer and can revive the others much more quickly. May I ask if they can heal the rest of my team?"

"A healer, you say?"

"Yes, Exedore. She has the ability to heal minor injuries. I know it's asking a lot when we've only just met, but could you let Hotaru heal our friends?"

Lisa glanced at Exedore, then Rick, each nodding their approval.

"You haven't given us any reason to doubt you so far, Washu," said Lisa, "but I'd like to see this healing for myself."

"Hmm, I don't think that would be a problem."

(B-D)

_After several long, exhausting hours, Hotaru and managed to revive the rest of her friends, much to the amazement of Lisa and her crew. What amazed them the most was the fact that most of Washu's team seemed to consist mostly of teenagers. However, after watching the display Ranma put on once he woke up, there was little doubt in anyone's mind that each of these young people were indeed quite capable of incredible feats._

"You can stop jumping around, Ranma. I think they get it, now."

"Heh, sorry, Washu," apologized Ranma. "I'm just glad to be awake."

"You're so silly, Ranma," giggled Hotaru.

"And this is normal for you guys?" asked Max after watching Ranma literally bounce from one wall to another.

"Pretty much," said Washu. "Hotaru, what was wrong with Guy?"

Hotaru glanced to the floor as Ranma scratched his head.

"I don't know. I healed him and he should've woken up, but he didn't."

"And what do your doctors say, Admiral?"

"Nothing seems to be wrong with him physically," answered Lisa. "His brain activity seems unusually high, though."

"Not surprising considering it's him," mumbled Washu.

"Excuse me?"

"Sorry, Admiral. It would almost figure that the one expert on our team is the one that can't wake up."

"Admiral?"

"Yes, Rick?"

"Seeing as how most of these guys are kids, why don't we give them a little tour of Sidonia City?"

"Hey, who are you calling a kid?" seethed Ranma.

"Shut it, Ranma," warned Washu. "They did save your life."

"…grumble."

"Sorry about that. I'm sure we'd love a tour of your city."

Just as soon as the words left her mouth, the warning sirens blared throughout the ship. Lisa touched a button on a nearby control panel.

"This is Admiral Hayes. What's the situation?"

"The Kilrathi have launched another attack on us. Please report to the bridge."

"Thank you, Sophie." Lisa sadly faced the visitors. "I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to attend my duties, as will we all. Please remain here until the danger has passed."

"Admiral, is there any way that we can earn your trust?"

Lisa stood for a moment, pondering the question posed by the scientist. "It's not that we don't trust you, but we don't want you getting hurt."

"Heh, you don't have to do that. You've already seen what Ryo-Ohki can do, and I've already explained our mission. Like I said, we're here to help you. We may be mostly geared toward ground battle, but the one spaceship we do have is the best from our home dimension…I guess you'd like to see for yourself."

"I don't think…"

"Don't worry, Admiral," said Washu as she brought up her laptop, "we'll be done with that attack force in a few minutes."

The officers of the SDF-2 glanced confusedly at one another. Miriya was the first to counter.

"A few minutes? Surely you don't expect to engage them in a few minutes."

"I don't," replied Washu with a smirk. "Like I said, we'll be 'done' with them. Ryoko, do it." She gave her mom a thumbs up before fading through the ceiling with Ryo-Ohki. The officers gawked. "I got a good look at their ships when we took out those fighters. Their design isn't bad and their shields are ok, but they don't even compare with my daughters."

"How can you…?" started Lisa when the control panel paged her. "Yes, this is Admiral Hayes…"

"Admiral, that ship that we brought in earlier is out and is about to engage the Kilrathi!"

Lisa glanced at the smiling Washu. "Hmm, would you please patch the scanner display to my location? I want to see what happens."

"Um, shouldn't we scramble our fighters?"

"…have them stand by to launch and await further orders from me."

"…but?"

"Is that understood, lieutenant?"

"Uh, yes admiral. I'll have Red and Blue squadrons on standby."

"Very good. Hayes out." She cut the connection as a display appeared on a nearby TV. "We'll be able to see everything that happens out there from here. There are two heavy cruisers out there; each has about 100 fighters each. I honestly don't know how…"

"Um, Lisa?" interrupted Rick.

"Rick, don't intr…"

"Look, Lisa!"

Lisa looked at the screen to see that the fighters were disappearing almost as fast as they appeared on the screen. After about twenty seconds, the two cruisers were no more. Lisa's jaw dropped.

"Admiral? Would you like to look out the window?"

"…"

"I think we lost the Admiral, Washu," said Rick. "What's out the window?"

"Oh, just a little something."

Perplexed, Rick called up to the bridge to get a visual on the Kilrathi fleet. All that was left was a debris field that was arranged into the shape of an animé happy face smiling right at the SDF-2. Lisa, only just know realizing what had just happened, fainted.

_Later that evening, Lisa was conducting an officers' meeting about their new guests._

"This is simply incredible, Lisa," remarked Grand Admiral Gloval over the vid comm screen. "Are you sure that this creature single-handedly destroyed an entire Kilrathi attack group in mere seconds?"

"I assure you, Admiral, I wouldn't have believed it myself it I hadn't seen it for myself. Rick, Max, and Miriya were there as well."

"Most of the group that was inside this 'Ryo-Ohki' are mostly humans like you," explained Exedore. "According to our medical examinations, three of them show signs of being somewhat related to humans, but there or some significant differences in terms of skin density and cellular structure. In many ways, they do appear human, but they most defiantly are not. The other children that accompany them are human. However, all but two of them seem to possess so sort of special ability that seems well beyond that of normal humans. As you can see in the reports, one even has the ability to heal some injuries."

"I don't recall coming across anything with those kinds of abilities," said Breetai, being on a different screen.

"Actually, we have, sir," corrected Exedore. "Several humans seem to have developed this very ability planetside. There aren't that many, but enough to fully document the occurrence."

"And you say that they've been nothing but cooperative?" asked Gloval.

"Yes. Washu, their leader, seems very intent on earning our trust. What is strange is the fact that she claims that what we're facing up here and on Earth are from video games."

Gloval and Breetai blinked as Claudia joined Gloval on his screen.

"I read that part of the report. Where do you think they got that information?"

"She says that they've been fighting enemies like this for a while, now, and that the one common factor is that they all came from some kind of game."

"I find that hard to believe," said Gloval.

"Lord Breetai, a video game is a form of visual entertainment, usually used by children up until adulthood."

"Thank you, Exedore. What I can't figure out is how such ruthless and dangerous foes such as the Kilrathi and Clan Wolf could possibly come from children's visual entertainment."

"I've conducted a search through our databanks for any mention of any of our enemies before we Zentraedi arrived here. Baal and Clan Wolf do appear, but Clan Wolf has nothing to do with a Destroid army while Baal was some sort of entity that was worshipped by several Middle Eastern cultures several thousand years ago. Baal was mostly mentioned in the history of the old Babylonian empire as well as some religious texts such as the Bible."

"Well, if it's anything like what we've been hearing down here, that Baal may have been real after all," said the tanned blond on a third screen.

"Hey, Roy," said Rick, "didn't you say that those things you're fighting down there said that he's the one leading them?"

"Yep. He also has two brothers from what we've gathered. Information is still sketchy right now, but a demonic invasion, no matter how weird it sounds, seems to fit what's going on down here if you don't count the wolves."

"This is all known information," sighed Lisa. "Washu says that she can help, but she apparently can't until their last member wakes up, and our doctors can't explain why he hasn't woken up, yet."

"I understand that this is frustrating, Lisa," said Gloval, "but you must remember to stay focused."

"I know…it's just…" Lisa paused as her pager vibrated. She glanced at, mostly out of reflex. "Oh…"

"What is it?" asked Rick.

"He's awake…"

_The final member of the Justice League of Animé has just come out of his mysterious coma. What secrets lie within him? How will this affect the events going on all around Earth?_

As Guy began to regain consciousness, Hotaru, who was waiting in his room to awaken, thought he murmured something about no pressure…

(B-D)

_Next time, on the Justice League of Animé, Guy finally awake and makes a starling revelation to not only the crew of the SDF-2 but also to himself. Meanwhile the forces of the undead advance on New Baltimore, the new headquarters of the Robotech Earth Defense Force. Roy Fokker and his battalion fight valiantly, but they are in desperate need for help against the forces that continue to grow with each passing day... Washu sends the JLA planetside to help, but will it be enough?. And what new information does Guy have to offer that will finally earn the trust of the command staff of the RDF and help them in their epic battle against all three sets of invaders before time runs out? Tune in next time next time for the next incredible episode of the Justice League of Animé._

(B-D)

A/N: I repent, I repent. I've noticed how long it's been, and I've been trying, but I can only do so much when my muse goes on sabbatical. Anyway, as you may have guessed, this is the last stop of the recruitment arch. Yes, it took a while, but we're almost done, and what a mess they've gotten into this time. Please forgive me if Ryo-Ohki seems a bit overpowered here, but trying to balance out everything is kinda hard. Heck, it took a while just to rewrite the history. Anyway, I'm getting right back into chp 16 so there won't be a 7 month wait again. This story will be finished and not die. R&R, guys. Your reviews help fuel this story. ;-)

Also, I changed all the (: around the narrator's speech into italics to help Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 !-- / Style Definitions / p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; page Section1 size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0; div.Section1 page:Section1; -- differentiate the narrator from the rest of the text. Apparently FFNet doesn't like asterisks in any form. Oh well. :-/


	16. Zombies and Demons and Mecha, Oh My!

Disclaimer: I don't own nothin'! Except Guy. :p

Guest starring the Narrator - _him speaking_

_**Zombies and Demons and Mecha, Oh My!**_

_It has been absolute chaos throughout the planet as creatures from the depths of the Earth seem to rise and attack anybody near them. Zombies, imps, and goblins, the type of creatures seen in science fiction, fantasy, and horror stories, have somehow come to life. Survivors of the Zetraedi onslaught are now experiencing an entirely new kind of holocaust. Small villages and towns are being razed to the ground. Slightly larger towns had enough of a militia to hold off these creatures of the night, but none know how long they can hold out. With most of the destroids preoccupied with the constant raids of Clan Wolf, the military was scrambling to find some way to protect their ground troops from possible exposure to becoming undead. There hadn't been any documented evidence of this, but with limited manpower and a three-front war, command was not taking any chances._

_Meanwhile, back on the SDF-2, Lisa and Rick had just arrived at the hospital with Washu and Ami to speak with the newly revived Guy, how may hold the vital key to this entire situation._

Guy shook his head as he sat on his hospital bed. Hotaru began to help him sit up straight. He looked around before finally focusing on Hotaru.

"Unn, what happened?" asked Guy.

"It seems that we appeared in space," replied Hotaru as she placed a damp cloth on Guy's forehead. "Most of us were unconscious, but Rei, Ami, and I recovered first. I helped to heal everyone else, but you wouldn't wake up…"

"Ok, Hotaru, now you're creeping me out.…"

That caught Hotaru off guard as she tried to change the subject. "So…how are you feeling?"

"Weird. I think I have a slight headache. Might be from the crazy dream that I had."

"What dream?"

"All kinds of craziness, but it also included you guys recovering first…"

Just then the three leaders walked in. Guy's jaw dropped.

"Welcome back, Guy," said Washu.

"…!" gaped Guy as he pointed at Lisa and Rick.

"Are you feeling all right?" asked Lisa.

"…! How…? But…?"

"Hold on, I think he's still rebooting. Give me a sec," quipped Washu as she bopped him on the head.

"Ow. I'm still recovering, you know!"

"Finally, a complete sentence."

"Whatever, Washu…but this is just too weird." The others looked strangely at Guy as he turned to the RDF officers. "I'm sorry, but your names wouldn't happen to be Rick and Lisa, would they?"

All present stared at Guy. Rick was in shock while Lisa kept her composure.

"Yes, I am…"

"Admiral Lisa Hayes of the SDF-2 or something?"

"Um, yes. I see your friend here has told you about us."

"He has only been up and about for a few minutes," said Hotaru. "I haven't told him much about what has happened, yet."

"Then how do you know us?" asked Rick.

"I don't think you guys would believe me," said Guy. "I don't even believe it myself."

**Knock. Knock.**

Ami opened the door as Rei and Ryoko was now let into the room. Rei seemed somewhat out of breath and one could tell that she had been sweating.

"My, this must be important for you to have run all over the ship to ask Ryoko to teleport you here," said Washu, further confusing Rick and Lisa with all of the missed nonverbal communication.

"It was," huffed Rei. "I had another vision."

"A vision?" asked Lisa.

"Yes. I'm a fire reader, but that's not important now." Rei turned to Guy. "I think you should tell us about your dream, Guy."

"How did…? Right," he sighed as he lightly smacked his forehead, "fire reader. You just said that. Ok, so now at least I don't think I'm losing my mind." He glared at Washu. "Not a word from you." Washu held up her hands in silent defense. "Ok…I saw this battleship traveling through space. It was trying to get from Pluto to Earth, but these giant aliens kept attacking them. They got to Earth, but the government wouldn't let them get the civilians off, but then …what were they? Kilrathi! That's it…man, they looked familiar, too. Anyway, they attacked, and I forget what happened right after that, but then the whole planet was surrounded with green space ships and pummeled the Earth with lasers. It was shortly after that and during the big fight that Rick saved Lisa from some arctic base that had a BFG-style cannon or something…anyway, then there was this seal that held three demon brothers. They broke out and started to do stuff…I don't know what. Then there's Clan Wolf that came through the Kilrathi jump gate that I think you guys took out…you know, now that I think of it, I think I know that game…um, did I lose you guys?"

Washu scratched her head as Lisa and Rick glanced at each other.

"How do you know what's been happening over the past few years?" asked Rick.

"Wait, you mean that stuff actually happened?"

"You've just told us a quick history of the past several years," said Lisa, "as well as a few military secrets."

"Whoa," whispered Guy. "Then that guy wasn't kidding, then."

"What guy?" asked Washu.

"The guy who was explaining everything that was going on in my dream. He was like a narrator or something…oh crud…"

"What's wrong?"

"If that guy's right, than something big is about to happen in…New Baltimore?"

"This is getting creepier by the minute, Lisa," said Rick. "He even knows where the RDF HQ is."

"I know," she replied. "There's no way that he could've known all of this without help, and I doubt that he's a spy considering that he knew things that the Kilrathi doesn't, like the name of Clan Wolf."

"Did you tell them about the games, Washu?"

"Yes, Guy, but they're naturally hesitant to believe us."

"I think there are multiple games here, and I think that's a very bad sign."

"I'd agree with you, there. Think you're up to helping us out, here?"

"Yeah, I never did like staying in a hospital bed…um, can I get dressed, guys?"

Ami and Hotaru blushed as they began to leave the room. Lisa told Rick to stay inside as they exited. The two women sat down in an empty examination room, with the young scouts just outside the door.

"What in heaven's name was that?" ask Lisa rhetorically.

"I think that's Kami-sama's way of getting you to listen to us. I know it's out there…way our there, but this is for real. These video games have become real and are threatening not only your world but countless others as well. I've already tried to explain just how big this is."

"So what is this bad sign that you spoke of?"

"In the past, we've only had to deal with a single game in each dimension, but now there's more than one, indicating that things are growing more unstable…" Washu was interrupted by a ring tone of _Amazing Grace_ coming from Ami. She searched herself, trying to find the source before snapping her fingers, and then her Mercury computer appeared on its own. After a moment, Ami gasped. "What is it, Ami?"

"It seems that one of the clues for this world was a timed one. It says 'your guess is right.'"

"Hmm, it must be more severe than I thought if that was one of our clues…" she glanced up to a rather confused Lisa. "Ah, these clues are just that, clues. They give us hints on what we need to do and what warriors are coming with us. I'll explain that last part later, but right now shouldn't you warn your headquarters about the upcoming event?"

"Hmm, while this is all extraordinary, I can't simply put my troops on high alert because some stranger had a remarkable dream."

"Understandable."

"But I can at least inform them to keep an extra eye out for anything unusual," Lisa added with a light smirk.

(B-D)

_With the Robotech Defense Force Headquarters on heightened alert, Roy Fokker has extra reconnaissance planes in the air around the clock. This does not go unnoticed as an evil not seen in millennia continues with his plan._

"So, they've increased their guard, eh?" said a skeletal, floating, legless apparition. A light blue mist of vapor and static weaved around it as it watched various images dance on the wavy surface of a blood red orb. "Soon they shall all perish, and I and my brothers shall finally turn this world into an outpost of Hell. Muahahahahaha! Faceless minion!"

A slender female with pale white skin, leather-like armor, and an assault rifle strapped to her back came out of the nearby shadows and knelt a short ways from the ghostly figure.

"You called, my lord?" answered the raspy voice of the female, sounding hoarse and strained.

"Yes, Vorpal. It is time to launch the attack on the humans' fortress. Take the undead as well as the skeletal ice mages. They seem to be more effective against those metal monstrosities that they use in battle. Also, take the giant metal golems. They should prove quite useful."

"May your will be done, my lord."

And with that, the female swiftly made her way to her preparations. The skeletal apparition once again turned toward the orb to continue to watch his target.

(B-D)

"Hold on a moment. What do you mean 'zombies'?"

"Just like I said, Kuno. Zombies, as in the undead. I'm not sure how well Ranma would be able to handle taking them down, but I figured that you two might be a bit more effective in the upcoming battle."

"Guy, you should know better than most to think that Ranma-honey can't handle himself out there."

"I don't doubt his abilities as a fighter. Heck, he's teaching me some seriously advanced stuff. The issue here is that against the undead, hand-to-hand isn't the best method to fight them."

"And how are you such an expert on the subject of the undead?" questioned Kuno.

"And gamer worth his salt has to know how to survive the Zombie Apocalypse," he said with a smirk.

Ukyo and Kuno glanced at each other as Washu leaned against the wall observing. She had the scouts distract Ranma by taking "her" shopping with Miriya as their guide. She and Ami already knew that the scouts and Knight Sabers were going planet side, but the martial artists seemed to be at a major disadvantage here and wanted to hear what these two thought.

"Our weapons can more than handle a few stupid zombies," continued Ukyo. "Why all the doubt?"

"Because during the battle there will be a lot of firepower being used out there," said Rick. "You three need to be pretty close to your target, but we'll be firing missiles and other explosives at those same targets. I hope you can understand the concern, here."

"In other words," stated Kuno, "we would merely be in the way."

"In so many words, yes. We trust you to the point where we're making plans based on your intel, and to not send you into the line of fire."

Ukyo slammed her fist on the table. "So you expect us to sit back here and sit on our thumbs while the rest of you go out and risk your lives for our mission? I don't think so. Sure, we'll know better than to go out into a fire fight with close-range weapons, but don't you think for a minute that we'd rather stay behind and do nothing. I doubt Kuno would survive without me and Ranma-honey for too long, but together we can really kick some butt."

"I would survive, but I must agree, I would not be, shall we say, 100% effective in this type of battle."

Rick glanced at Washu. "They have a hard time getting along with each other," she shrugged. "They've come a long way, but there's still some issues, there. Anyway, I've decided. Rick, do you have anything that could use the talents of these two young people?"

"Not yet," said Rick as he stroked his chin, "but I think I may have something for all three in mind."

(B-D)

_In its heyday, the Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall airport was one of the three major airports near the capital of one of the most powerful and influential countries in the world. After the global bombardment, the United States had about 34 states remaining. The rest was charred wasteland or large, radioactive craters caused by nuclear stockpiles getting hit from above. The Mid-Atlantic coast was hit pretty hard, but some cities managed to survive. Washington D.C. was part of history, now, as well as most of the southern states. The West coast fared even worse, as the bombardment caused several doomsday scenarios to play out simultaneously. Washington state was all that remains of the original west coast. Idaho, most of Utah, and Arizona now make up the remainder, although they are uninhabitable along with most of Mexico and a lot of Central America, thanks to the Kilrathi. The one piece of good news was that the government was now controlled by people who loved their country and did what was right rather than what was most profitable or act for social justice. The capital was moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and the RDF had rebuilt the BWI airport and its surrounding areas into their new earth-bound headquarters with the help of an ever present squad of refitted deforestation destroids._

The RDF HQ was the size of a small city, surrounded by a network of fencing, walls, and guard posts. Since very little of the once largest city in Maryland survived, they named the resulting city New Baltimore, although the locals still refer to it as BWI. With several surviving major roadways and a pre-existing airport, this was the best choice for the new base all things considered. At least, all that was considered before the demonic invasion hit.

The attack happened suddenly. A guard thought he heard the steps of a non-micronized Zetraedi and went to investigate. He found it, but not in the condition he'd imagine. It was missing his left arm, left foot, and most of his head. The pale greenish tint of his skin was made even worst as mold, mildew, and decay spread unchecked all over his body. As the guard had turned to report this, he ran into several others in the same condition, but human sized. He was the first casualty of the zombie invasion from the west. Fortunately he had his partner watching for him, and when his radio was cut off amid the gunfire and screaming, his partner radioed for backup. Now, slow zombies of either normal or giant sizes, aren't much of a match for the shelling that ensued. The problem was the hordes of fast demons and other creatures of hell popping out from the ground inside the base. Destroids tried to step on them and they were scaled and torn to pieces while the more maneuverable Veritechs had better luck fending them off. No one on the base defense development team had imagined an army burrowing into various parts of the base simultaneously. Most soldiers were already prepared to fend off the attack, but not from the inside. Roy Fokker wanted to be in the air minutes after the attack siren went off, but he was the base commander and was stuck in the command center coordinating the defense grid. He knew his piloting skills were wasted here, but his tactical prowess justified his presence. The door to his left side opened and an eccentric group of youngsters entered the room.

"It's about time you guys got here," said Roy as he looked over the two hardsuits. "Not bad armor."

"Thanks," replied Linna, flashing a peace sign.

"We're here to help," said Mercury as she stepped forward. "Where do you need us?"

Roy looked over Sailor Mercury with an arched eyebrow. He quickly shook his head of the off-topic thoughts and focused. 'Why did they have to be under-aged?' "Are you sure…?"

"We are battle tested and fully capable of handling ourselves out there, despite how we look, Mr. Fokker," Mercury said sternly as she looked Roy straight in the eye. Washu had warned her about this, but was surprised at how indignant she felt when their abilities were questioned. "I understand that you haven't seen us in action, yet, but rest assured we can fight."

Roy held his hands in surrender. "Ok, ok, you win. I won't question you on that." Roy turned to the various screens and turned serious. "They're all over the place. We never thought that they'd come up from below through concrete without any equipment. We're doing everything we can to hold them at bay, but if those giant zombies get inside the perimeter, we're going to be in even deeper trouble."

Mercury studied the screens for a moment before summoning her computer. After a moment the visor disappeared. "There doesn't seem to be a focus to their attack."

"That's right. It seems that they're just attacking us indiscriminately, like they're trying to wipe us out."

"So what we need is to cut off the attack from its source," stated Mercury. "Guy contacted me before we arrived. I understand that you have some deforesting mecha, is that right?"

"Well, yeah, but…"

"Guy says that those would be pretty effective against zombies."

"Oh really? How would you know that?"

"Something about the Zombie Apocalypse. Anyway, we have a plan."

(B-D)

The battle had raged on for a good few hours before things made a turn for the worse. Several groups of minor imp-like creatures had constructed about ten catapults just inside the tree line and caused some significant damage to the base, although it didn't take long for the advanced technology to find them. They ceased to be a problem shortly after that. What came next, however, would cause nightmares for many who would survive this day. They came suddenly and attacked without thought. Whether human, demon, or mecha, they did not care. They were rusted and sun-bleached, and usually missing a limb or two. They appeared to be more giant zombies, but they were in fact mecha. The engineers looked at them and wondered how they could possibly move, never mind fight, but it was the screams that caused many to pause. They sounded like a tortured soul that hadn't seen mercy in years. Several of these zombie mecha were destroids at one point, others were Veritechs, and some were even from Clan Wolf, but they were all impossibly swift and deadly. Many still had live ammo loaded on them, which took out more than a few unknowing pilots. The "live" Veritech fighters could no longer provide their crucial air support as they now had their own battle to wage. The ground forces were beginning to lose ground to the unrelenting onslaught until a mist appeared to cover the entire base. The defenders instinctively switched to infrared, and when that didn't work switch to motion detection. Seeing that the demons and zombies needed to see in order to attack, the RDF Central Command organized for a massive counter attack. Standing on top of a building in the middle of the base stood a single scout clad in white and blue, with a hint of red on her cheeks. Her communicator came alive to get her attention.

"Great job on the mist, Mercury," said Ryoko from above the base. "You managed to cover the whole base."

"I did?" epped Mercury. "I was only trying to cover this area."

"Heh, no big. Anyway, thought you'd like to know that Ranma's team found the entrance."

"That's great. I have to stay here to maintain the mist. Have the strike team meet at Ranma's location and have Nene return for her part."

"Sig hiel, Herr Mercury,"

"What?" deadpanned Mercury.

"Geez, work on your sense of humor some, girl."

"Sorry."

"No problem. Ryoko out."

Her communicator went silent. It seemed that she was going to be maintaining her mist for much longer than she though. She slowly sat herself down into a cross-legged position and began to meditate. She was still just beginning to understand the mechanics behind meditation, as she had never needed to do so, but she knew that she was much more powerful than before, and for once she wasn't locked in close-quarters combat with innocents at risk. She had the rare opportunity to explore what she could do with her powers during a combat scenario and have time to think rather than act on instinct.

(B-D)

The JLA met at team Ranma's position about 2 miles from the south-eastern perimeter in about fifteen minutes. As they arrived behind the flow of creatures coming from the entrance, they had to pause and gawk at the scene around them. The trees had been cleared away into a field roughly fifty feet across. The remains of almost a hundred zombies, both human and Zetraedi, lay still and in various forms of defeat. The smell of charred and decayed flesh did not escape anyone, but what surprised everyone was that the three martial artists were still relatively clean, although Ranma was a girl sitting next to a tea kettle over a fire and Kuno trying to flirt with her, much to her annoyance. Ukyo stood to the side, obviously amused while she filled in what had happened.

"…and that's what happened," finished Ukyo. She glanced over to Ranma-chan just as she pummeled Kuno into a nearby tree stump after he knocked over the kettle.

"And you're able to laugh after all of that?" asked the disbelieving Linna. She was combat hardened, but zombies were a whole new level of disturbing.

"I didn't know you could do that to zombies," said an astonished Ayeka.

"That's how Ranma-honey got wet."

"But there's no water around," said Saturn.

"…I try not to think about it," face-palmed Ukyo. "Besides, if what Washu says is true, than we'll be facing even worse than this."

"Worse then giant zombies and demons?" bulked Tenchi, "I've fought a galactic menace one-on-one and that doesn't come close to what I just went though."

"That'll happen," said Max, who had been a member of the search team while seated on the foot of his Veritech fighter. "Once you think you've seen it all, something else comes up to surprise you. That's what I learned today."

"Ok," interrupted Ranma-chan, "So are we all here?"

Everyone nodded as Max double-blinked.

"Um…" started Max.

"Don't worry," nudged Mars, "that's still Ranma."

" Oh, ok…," Max shook his head, "wait, what?"

Ranma-chan began to brief everyone on the mission ahead. "We've already gone in a little to see if the big robots could enter. Good thing they can. Hopefully they can shoot up enough stuff for us to get to where we're going. Guy says that there should be some kind of boss down there. We don't know what it is, but it's got to be powerful to be controlling this kind of army. Max, do you have those probes?"

"Yes, ma'am." Saluted Max.

"I'm a guy, Max."

"But…you're a…"

Ranma-chan sighed. "Oh, right. Never mind. *grumble* Anyway, go ahead and send them in."

"Yes ma…I me…mean, sir."

"Ok…Guy says that the game we're going up against here is called Diablo 2. The enemies change sometimes, but they should be the same as what we've already seen back at the base. Also, there's gonna be a ton of weapons and armor dropping from these guys. If it looks like it may be useful, pick it up and give it to Linna, especially any scrolls or books. Plus he says that we would normally not know where we're going, but that's where Nene comes in. Those probe things will give Nene a map of the whole place, so she can tell us exactly where to go and maybe even what to expect. Basically, Nene tells us where to go, and we go in and kick undead butt. Any questions?"

"Yeah," said Ryoko. "When the heck did you start sounding like a leader?"

Ranma-chan's hand instinctively grabbed her pigtailed hair. "Heh heh, guess it was the moment."

After a few moments and rumbles from inside the cave, their communicators came alive.

"Test, one two, can everyone hear me?"

"Yes we can, Nene," responded Ranma-chan. "You get anything, yet?"

"Um, yeah," Nene hesitated, not expecting a female voice. "Ok, it looks like Guy's theory of offensive probes was right. Looks like most of the probes got shot down on the second level around the same spot, so that's most likely where the boss is."

"Cool. You ready to clear us a path, Max?"

The towering Veritech cocking its rifle was all they needed to know.

(B-D)

"What kind of magic is this?" asked the apparition as it glared at the glowing orb before him. It was mostly gray, marked frequently with random explosions. "Even the orb cannot see through that mist. I saw the blue clad female sorceress cast a spell, and than nothing," Mephisto screamed in frustration, backhanding the remains of one of the probes that had bothered him earlier. After watching it skim across the ground before settling against a far off wall, it turned again to the orb. "And now they have also found us and have infested this dungeon." It suddenly peered closer to the orb. "Waaaiiit…is that an assassin? But she has no blades…and that Amazon wields a strange weapon. A lot of time has passed, so it would make sense for the hero types to have changed as well, since they also have one of those giant metal golems with them. I must learn how they've managed to improve upon those. Bah! I distract myself. They seem to make great progress through my forces. I had not anticipated them to find us, and I've sent all of our undead metal golems to the attack, but I know what to strike down, first."

(B-D)

"I'm loving these new mods to my suit, Washu," said Nene as she directed her teammates through the dungeon through her hard suit being connected to Central Command's computer system.

"I'm glad you like them," she replied through the communicator. "I'm also glad that Guy suggested the cameras on our people, too. And here I thought that Dungeon Keeper had some weird creatures in his army."

"Yeah, no kidding. I'm glad I'm not down there. Ranma, go left at entrance, than bear right at the end of the corridor. So yeah, having a giant mecha really does help, though."

"We're lucky that the dungeon was big enough for it," said Guy. "This is turning out to be a lot better than I dared hope."

"I thought you didn't like saying stuff like that," said Washu.

"I don't, but even with the multi-player multiplier, that Veritech is not surprisingly very effective in this situation."

"I will admit," chimed in Roy, "you guys run like a machine. Especially that blue-haired girl. That cover she provided practically turned the tide of the battle. We're pretty much in mop-up mode, now. This would've turned out a lot worse if we didn't have a heads up on this."

"Ranma!" exclaimed Nene. "Have everyone regroup in the room straight ahead. I think you've just reached the boss. Mars, it's time to read."

(B-D)

They entered the large cavern, roots traveling along the roof and floor. Torches lined the circular room, barely managing to light the area. Their hair began to tingle for a moment before they were blinded by a flash of lightning. As their eyes and visual displays recovered, the apparition appeared in the center of the room, its arms slowly lowering and its voice echoing throughout.

"I am the bigotry that lurks in the hearts of humans." Lightning started to form around his entire being. "I am the festering bitterness that forever steals the joy of children." The lightning began hitting random spots around the cavern, scorching many roots. "I am conflict." It pointing to itself as it grow brighter and brighter. "I am hatred." It raised its arm in the heroes' direction. "I am **MEPHISTO!"** A thick bolt of lightning lashed through the air, hitting Max's Veritech fighter square in the neck, leaving a gaping, sparking hole and a few singed hairs from its pilot. The heroes were already in action before the mecha hit the ground, relatively softly thanks to Ryoko.

(B-D)

"Whoa…" as Guy voiced the general sentiment of the leaders watching. "Now THAT was an awesome intro."

"Guy!" yelled Washu.

"Hey, I'm glad that he missed Max's head and all, but geez, that looked so cool." **BONK!** "Ow…"

"Shut it, Guy," growled Washu, shaking off the minor pain in her hand. "Nene, how's the camera on Max's Veritech?"

"Looks like the camera is still ok, but barely. Another couple of inches higher and we'd be relying only on fast moving images."

"Good. Point it at this Mephisto thing. He's obviously the boss for this area."

"That's not just a boss, Washu," said Guy. still rubbing his head. "That's one of the three big bosses. That's Baal's brother. Take him out, and you get to Diablo, than Baal."

"I see," said Roy, "but I thought the game was called 'Diablo 2'. So why is Diablo not the last boss?"

Guy raised his finger to answer, only to stop when he realized that he had no answer.

"Um, guys?"

"Yes, Nene?" answered Washu.

"The others look like they're having a rough time."

"Right, right. We need to focus and see if we can find any weaknesses."

(B-D)

Ranma-chan paused for a moment as he hung from a root on the ceiling and observed. Mephisto shot out lightning blasts like he throw chi blasts. After seeing what it did to the mecha, not even Ryoko wanted to experience how powerful that lightning was. Fortunately, it wasn't anywhere near as fast as the real thing, but it was still fast enough to catch you if you let your guard down. There was no doubt in his mind, though, that this was the toughest fight, yet. After another moment, she realized that all they had to do was dodge his blasts and keep hitting him from all directions. She saw Max call to Ryoko and Linna. When she realized what they were doing, she sprang back into action. Once she got to everyone, Ranma yelled "Fire." With that, everyone cleared away from Mephisto. He paused, wondering what they were planning. His eyes widened when he saw the flyer and the smaller golem lifting the larger golem's cannon, with the flyer pulling the trigger. He was slow, very slow, despite his affinity to lightning, so instead of trying to dodge the projectile, he instead leveled one of his strongest attacks at them. The resulting explosion knocked everyone against the surrounding walls. The commanders watching the battle no longer could, as all the cameras were badly damaged or shorted as a result.

"That…didn't work so well…" winced Ukyo as she struggled to her feet.

"But did *cough* that thing get hit, too?" coughed Saturn.

"Guys," said Ryoko as she hovered wobbly in the air, "Mephisto's still alive…"

"You're kidding me," wheezed Ranma.

"I have not been so damaged in millennia. For that, you shall all perish!"

Although his movement was much slower than before, it was clear what was going to happen next. Ranma-chan grit her teeth. She really did not want to do what she was thinking.

"Mars, are still up?"

"Barely."

"Use the scroll. We gotta get outta here."

"You don't have to tell me twice," she said as she opened the scroll. As soon as she unrolled it is vanished, and suddenly a bluish-white portal appeared next to her. "Everyone, get in here!"

"You shall not escape!" yelled Mephisto as he unleashed another bolt.

Ranma-chan managed to kick Mephisto in the side of his head. "Go! I'll distract him!" She dodged a wild swing and rolled out of the way of his telegraphed lightning attack. Every time Mephisto began to turn his attention to the others, Ranma-chan would renew her attack, despite the fact that she was quickly tiring. This turned out to be key, as Mephisto finally got a good backhand to her face. After a few tumbles, she struggled to get back up, only to find that Linna had taken over the attack. She was about to try to join again when she felt hemself picked up bridal style.

"Linna and Ayeka are covering us," informed Ryoko as she flew them toward the portal."

Even though her shield was not as effective as they had hoped, Ayeka was at least able to keep Linna from any more major hits as they both backed their way to the portal. Ayeka's and Linna's eye widened when they saw Mephisto begin to power up an attack instead of simply throwing it at them. They felt a tug as they were dragged by a pair of hands through the portal. As they disappeared through the escape portal, Mephisto ceased his attack and floated forward a few feet.

"Accursed town portals. To think that they still exist after all this time…"

(B-D)

The fog was thick and humid, and visibility was only a few feet. After their hasty retreat through the portal, the JLA had no idea where they had appeared. All they knew was that they were outside, judging from the muffled sounds all around them.

"Any idea where we are?" asked Mars as she lowered Ayeka and Linna to the ground.

"Nope," said Ukyo.

"Saturn," called out Max with a wince. "Ranma's pretty hurt."

"We need to find out where the…" started Linna when the fog suddenly lifted. Those that were able went on guard, but froze when they found themselves surrounded by destroids and Veritechs with weapons aimed right at them. The JLA glanced at one another, noticing that three of their number was helpless. Tenchi had a nasty, cauterized wound to his side. Max had a sprained ankle and seemed to have a concussion. Ranma-chan, however, was sporting bruises, cuts, and a broken arm. Seeing their options, they all raised their hands in surrender.

"Hold your fire!" yelled out a familiar voice as the blue-clad sailor scout landed on the shoulder of one of the Veritechs. The mecha surrounding them didn't seem hear her at first, but soon enough they all lowered their weapons and began to disperse. "Thank goodness you're all ok…oh my…"

One destroid knelt down near them. "I've already contacted CentCom to get medics out here," informed the pilot via speaker. "I will stand guard until you are evaced."

"Thank you," said Mercury. She turned to her teammates. "You all look worse than we did after fighting the Dungeon Keeper."

"That thing was a lot tougher than the Keeper was," said Ukyo. "Shot lightning and everything."

"Yeah," chimed in Linna, "and hitting it was like trying to hit a ghost.

"Wow. So, did you beat it?" She asked optimistically. The lowered, frustrated looks on her friends' faces answered her questions.

(B-D)

_Several hours after the successful defense of RDF headquarters, the RDF command staff, along with Washu and Guy, held their debriefing_

"So thanks to these guys, the death toll was a lot lower and damage to the base was substantial, but mitigated thanks to Sailor Mercury's fog blinding the enemy. They were also able to fend off Mephisto with some injury and the loss of one Veritech. When we sent out black ops in to finish him, he was already gone."

"Thank you, Commander Fokker," said Gloval in the video conference. "Am I to assume that not every encounter will give us a chance at one of these 'Demon Brothers'?"

"I'd normally say no," answered Guy as he stood next to Washu, Lisa, and Rick, "but there may be a better chance in this case as the world is vastly different from the one that they're used to. Mephisto didn't like being shot with a slug from Max's Veritech, so the real challenge is to find them again."

"Very well," pondered Gloval. "You've given us a lot of intelligence that we can act upon, and even more to think about. I believe that I speak for the whole command staff when I say that you have earned our trust."

Washu's smile split her face as she bowed. "I thank you all for your confidence. I wish I could say that we can stay and beat the demon brothers, but our last two clues kinda tells us that we have to move on to the next dimension."

This earned gasps from everyone present. "What do these clues say?" asked Exedore.

"The first says, 'you can't save them all.'"

"Well that's sort of depressing," quipped Roy.

"I know, but it makes sense. Each dimension we've visited so far has been increasing in difficulty as we go along. We've been able to prevail thus far, but this was the first time that we've fought to a draw, and from what Guy's told me, Mephisto is the weakest of the three. We haven't even started on Clan Wolf…do you see where I'm going with this?"

"I see," said Breetai. "It is the same strategy that you used in New Baltimore. You have a specialized strike team take out the source of the attack while your main forces battle theirs. It is a good strategy considering what we are fighting. You have mentioned that a few of our soldiers will be joining you while the rest of us remain as 'defenders of the realm.' At this point the main question is who will be going with you."

"And that is what our final clue tells us," answered Washu. "It says, 'Skull 1, 2, and 3.'"

Lisa's eye widened as Gloval puffed on his pipe. "So I see that you'll be taking three of our best pilots, then."

"It seems that way, Admiral," responded Washu.

Gloval thought for a moment, then spared a quick glance toward Lisa. "We have much to discuss about this. You and Guy are dismissed."

"Thank you, sir," bowed Washu as she and Guy were led out of Lisa's meeting room. They were soon met by Ranma, Ami, and Nene in the next room.

"So how'd it go?" asked Ranma.

"Better than I had hoped," said Washu. "Seems like they just have to hammer out some logistics to get our new recruits out of active duty."

"Cool. Do we get giant robots on our team, now?"

"Yes, Ranma, we now have giant robots at our command."

"Heh, heh…cool."

"So what now?" asked Nene.

"We wait," was the leader's answer. "I've already gotten permission so I can make the same modifications to those Veritechs that I had with your hardsuits. It wouldn't be fun trying to explain them if we end up in a medieval-style dimension..."

"Good point."

"I suggest that you ask the Sterlings if they can take the crew out for the night. Ami, Nene and I have some tinkering to do."

Washu walked off, a soft but echoing maniacal laughter emanating from her as her aura flared. The young geniuses followed nervously, glancing back for a moment before turning the corner.

"Wow," deadpanned Guy. "That looked more like a death march than anything."

"At least we aren't the targets."

"True, Ranma. Very true."

(B-D)

_Two days had passed, and the JLA and their new recruits were ready to go. Washu had learned how the Robotechnology worked and was able to create and small hanger in her lab to accommodate the three Veritech fighters. Admirals Gloval and Hayes were extremely impressed at the demonstration, particularly with the self-replicating ammunition pods. After receiving the plans for the pods, there was no longer any discord for having the RDF's three best pilots going on detached assignment during a three-front war._

_Rick, Miriya, and Max stood by their new teammates as they were given a small send off. As their mission was classified Secret, only a privileged few were there._

Guy shook his head again, garnering a glance from his friends.

"You ok, Guy?"

"Yeah, Rei. Just that narrator guy again."

"I still think you just hit your head on something back in Megatokyo," said Linna.

"Hey, don't blame me, ladies. I can't help it if I hear…um, I don't think I'm going to finish that last statement."

As his friends continued to pick on Guy, a more heartfelt moment was being shared a few yards away.

"Man, I never thought I'd see this," said Ben Dixon, the new interim leader of Skull Squadron.

"Indeed," puffed Gloval, having come up to the SDF-2 to personally see off his soldiers and friends.

"How long do you think they'll be like that?" asked Washu with much amusement as Rick and Lisa stood locked in a kiss for the past ten minutes.

"I can't blame them, though," said Claudia. "I'm surprised that they haven't tied the knot, yet."

"They'll be fine," said Roy as he wrapped her in his arms from behind. "Although they are giving me some ideas."

"Why don't we do that for as long, darling?" Miriya asked innocently.

"Heh, heh…" Max eloquently responded, hand behind his head.

"At least you're going with your husband," said Washu. "Besides, you guys can try that out later."

Max continued to chuckle nervously as Washu winked to Miriya knowingly, earning a confused look from her. Ben placed his hand on Washu's shoulder. "She's still learning our culture." That got a nod of understanding from the scientist.

The group quieted when they hear the two lovers whisper "I love you" to each other before they slowly parted.

"Don't worry about a thing, Lisa," assured Washu. "We'll bring him back in one piece."

"I know," said Lisa as she tried to keep her composure.

"We'll make sure he's safe," said Max. "Ben won't let me live it down otherwise."

The JLA finally gathered with their new teammates as they prepared to leave. The pilots each wore loose fitting jeans and colored tee shirts. Rick had on a black tee shirt and a red flight jacket, while the Sterlings each wore matching light blue tee shirts and dark blue flight jackets. Ukyo was latched onto Ranma's arm while Ayeka and Ryoko occupied each of Tenchi's arms. The two boys simply stood there, chuckling nervously. Washu stood before everyone as the last goodbyes were exchanged.

"You guys ready?"

"Yes, ma'am," responded the new recruits, snapping to attention.

"…wow, should I even try to get used to this?"

"I wouldn't," said Linna. "They'd just spoil you."

"Heh, yeah." Washu turned around to face the defenders and bowed. "Thank you for your trust and hospitality. Although I wish I could say that things'll resolve themselves once we accomplish our mission, but I'm sure you understand." Receiving a nod from Gloval, Washu once again faced her team. "Wow, we're getting big. Ok, let's go!" Washu pressed the button on her C.I.T. A large, circular portal swirling with a psychedelic mix of blue and white appeared, with the occasional flash of lightning. Never mind the gentle 20mph breeze. The pilots stepped back in amazement, immediately recognizing the portal.

"Is that lightning safe?" asked Max, the one never expecting to get drowned out by the wind.

"Ok, everyone in an orderly fashion," called out Washu, again missing the earlier question.

"This is not going to put us into space, will it?" asked Miriya.

"I hope not, but this time Ryo-Oki is on guard, just in case."

Most of the team shrugged and walked into the portal. The three pilots stopped short and gave a salute to their friends before stepping through. Everyone stood slightly apart from one another, each on guard, not knowing what was to come. Finally, the seconds passed.

_**POP!**_

They all stood in a lush forest, bird singing, and squirrels leaping from branch to branch. A lake separated the forest, giving way to a small mountain topped by a shrine. All but a few of the group seemed to relax.

"Well, it's better than space," said Guy.

"Yeah," said Tenchi, "but why does this place look so familiar?"

"Hey," Ryoko nudged Ayeka, "isn't that…"

"Excuse me," called out a voice from behind a few trees, causing a few to pale. A yellow and black-clad boy came out from around the tree carrying a large backpack topped with a bamboo umbrella. "Can any of you tell me where the Masaki Shrine…is…?"

Suddenly the two rivals locked eyes, pointing at each other in shock.

"YOU!" yelled the gifted aquatransexual and the eternal lost boy.

Washu and Tenchi glanced at each other. All they could do was facepalm as the others stared in confusion.

(B-D)

A/N: Dear God, I just made it before the 2 freaking year mark. While it's hard to write stories when I have one going on two kids in diapers, I still shouldn't do this to you guys. Anyway, this is the last chapter of the recruitment arch of the story. The next chapter will explain where the JLA will be going next, and then the war itself. I'm thinking of doing a couple of _Meanwhile, back at the ranch_ chapters showing just how widespread the PC game invasion really is. If you guys have any ideas, please let me know. I'll be happy to write it...just give me a while. ;)

Ok, enough excuses. I'm going to do my best to get some more writing in. I'll see ya'll next chapter. ^_^

_Several hours after the successful defense of RDF headquarters, the RDF command staff, along with Washu and Guy, held their debriefing_


End file.
